The Richeys from BG

Cleaning Out My Desk

2012-01-26T09:48:00.000-06:00

I am cleaning out my desk today. Technically, my last day is not until Monday but I'm going to take the majority of my stuff home today.

The reasons behind that decision are

1: I don't want to wait till the last minute

2: a bunch of my co-workers are gone today and I think removing my stuff today will cause less "sappy drama".

Also, since a bunch of my co-workers are gone today, I decided to buck the dress code and am wearing blue jeans. W-H-O-A... In the past four and a half years, I have only worn blue jeans to work four or five times and each of those times I'm pretty sure I made a donation to the American Heart Association in order to earn the "privilege". Not today. Today, I'm just in jeans. Sorry for the dark, bathroom self portrait.

Oh and since I'm trying to catch up on my life... If I had to name this picture, I would call it Crossing the Finish Line in the Tour De Bonus Room. haha. Yes, hubby and I have bicycles in our bonus room that are set up on stationary trainers so every once in a while (for me, all the time for him) we go upstairs and ride bikes. Last night we rode bikes and watched Louisville play basketball. Needless to say, I was being an idiot in this picture.

And because we couldn't have a blog without a picture of the princess!

And finally because this is my blog and I can put this up here if I want to... Hopefully, I can have a real picture of my Callie girl like this someday. I'm hoping, hoping, hoping that she'll be a horsey girl just like her momma!

Stay At Home Mom??? Me???

2012-01-18T14:47:00.000-06:00

Hi Friends...

I guess that really this post could've been titled "So this is where I lost my job..." but, I'm trying to look on the positive! Actually, it is very positive. We had discussed this at length but always come to the conclusion that "the timing wasn't right" and we would say "maybe in a a few months". Apparently, God decided that he didn't approve of our delays and on November 30 I received the news that as of January 30, I would be unemployed due to budget cuts. We stewed and thought and cried and prayed and by Christmas had realized what a blessing this truly could be. We have decided that I will be a full time, stay at home mom. Hopefully, along with my SAHM position, I can also find the time and energy to blog. Working full time and then being a mommy/wife has left me with little opportunity to communicate with you all. I have still been reading a lot of blogs but posting and commenting has obviously decreased. I am also planning to get my butt back to the gym. I have lost all of my pre-pregnancy weight plus about 5 or 10 extra pounds (????) but believe me, nothing is the same. I miss the little flat belly that I had before it expanded to fit a 7 1/2 pound babe! I will get it back though, I'm determined!

So anyway, I hope that you all (assuming, of course, that anybody even still reads this...) are doing well. Be on the lookout for more regular posts from me...

Oh, and I'll leave you with a couple of pictures of my Callie Belle! Much Love!

I fell off the blogging planet...

2011-07-28T15:43:00.001-05:00

No guarantees guys, I'm not sure that I can keep up a blog but I did want you all to know that my sweet Callie Belle is here and she's amazing. She was born April 18 and weighed 7 pounds 7 ounces and was 20 1/2 inches long.

Here are some recent pictures...

Like I said, I will try... but if not, I hope that you all are doing well and that your summers are as amazing as my has been!

Last Week Was a Rough Week...

2011-04-12T08:30:00.000-05:00

Well, I think I'm almost recovered. Honestly, I really just hope that I am. Last week was a pretty difficult week for me. I made an unexpected and pretty much un-Callie related trip to my ob's office which was followed three days later by a trip to the "Private Referral" portion of the hospital, followed by another trip the next day, followed by a trip to Labor & Delivery that afternoon. It was definitely not awesome.

To make a very long story short, I had raging stomach issues (sorry for the TMI) for approximately 8 days which caused me to be extremely dehydrated. The trips to private referral resulted in IV treatments with a liter of fluid each day. I also had an ultrasound done to check the fluid levels in my uterus as well a Non-Stress Test done on Callie. It was exhausting and when the OB asked me if I would rather stay over-night and continue IV fluids or go home and sleep in my own bed, I begged and pleaded to go home.

I contracted a bacterial information called C Diff which should basically be considered hell and will make you feel that way until you have been diagnosed and been on antibiotics for probably 36 hours. The OB described it to Drew as basically a bacteria that makes your insides and gut "raw"... He was trying to find food that I could eat (I lost 5 pounds during this period) and she told him that throwing food at me would only make me more miserable and shock my system. I was eating jello and drinking Gatorade and that was pretty much it.

Fortunately, Callie Belle is doing fabulously and we did learn some exciting things about her through the Ultrasound. As of Thursday, she is approximately 7 1/2 pounds (give or take a pound...) and has hair! I'm sure that it will be dark brown or maybe even black and I just absolutely can not wait to see her! Hopefully she will be here soon!

I was also told that I am now officially to be on maternity leave. Apparently after all the stress to my system, I am supposed to be staying home and resting. That has sort of worked, except for the fact that I've been waking up at crazy times in the morning. This morning, I was out of bed unloading the dishwasher at 5:45.... Oops... so much for rest!

Anyway, well, hopefully we will have a baby soon but I wanted to let you all know what had been going on with us. Needless to say, it has not been fun!

****Also, I should add that my normal OB was on Spring Break through this whole ordeal in Cabo... Lucky her. Her instructions last time I saw her included that I was not allowed to have a baby because she wouldn't be there to deliver her. Something tells me, she would have rather me gone into labor than almost be admitted to the hospital for some crazy raging bacteria!

KB & Baby - Week 37

2011-04-01T08:59:00.001-05:00

How Far Along: 37 Weeks
Size of Baby: Miss Callie is about the size of a Swiss Chard... Now, I have no idea what that is or what the size of it is so we will say that she is approximately 6.3 pounds and 19.25 inches (according to my iPhone app).
Total Weight Gain/Loss: By my scale this morning - 25 pounds (I am extremely pleased)...
Maternity Clothes: Everything is maternity! Drew has a few t-shirts (that he says are too big for him) that I can still wear if we go walking or to lay around the house but everything else is maternity. Now even the maternity clothes are even not working. The waist bands in my pants are starting to slide underneath my belly which makes me pretty self-conscious. I don't want to be one of those Mommy's-to-be who walks around with her bare belly hanging out.
Gender: G-I-R-L!
Movement: Her movement is now almost continuous. Especially when I'm at my desk at work. Its also starting to be a little painful.
Sleep: This one sucks. Sleep varies from almost non-existant to interrupted. Last night was interrupted, night before last non-existant...
What I miss: Just the norm... but we're getting so excited that it doesn't matter!
Cravings: no real cravings or aversions... I seem to be eating all of the same foods that I ate before pregnancy, which is nice.
Symptoms: Basically just exhaustion and body soreness. Pretty much every night you can find me passed out on my couch by about 8. I have been in bed asleep by 9:30 or so for the past few nights...
Best Moment this week: Probably packing hospital bags on Monday night. I was really excited to get some of the stuff put together. I still have a few of your suggestions (thank you for these, btw, they were very helpful!) that I need to get together and will probably work on those this weekend. Also, the nursery is now completely put together and I absolutely love it. I'm so proud of it and need to post some pictures for you guys.

Hospital Packing...

2011-03-29T09:01:00.000-05:00

Ok, I need some advice. I am usually a major procrastinator and that has gotten me into ~~large amounts of~~ trouble on more than one occassion. I decided last night that I needed to do my best to not fall into that habit for the next three to four weeks. I worked on laundry last night and even started to pack my hospital bag. So far it includes:

nursing tanks with pajama pants
a nursing night gown because I figure I'll be much more comfortable in it than in a hospital one for at night
house slippers
flip flops
fuzzy socks
a fleece to wear if the room is cold
a robe
two sleep nursing bras and then another nursing bra
I also packed sanitary pads and nursing pads
I also have snacks for the dad, grandparents, and then for me to have in the room while we're there

I have also worked on packing for Callie, even though I don't think that she'll need as much... She has:

her going home outfit (w/ blanket, etc)
boppy
her baby book and a pen so that visitors can sign it
a notebook so that if she is brought any gifts we can keep track of them

I have a few things that I know I'll need to pack closer to time so that I can use them up until the date. They are:

toiletries (even though I'd like to go ahead and get some travel shampoo/conditioner, saline solution, etc. and put them in a bag so that they're not forgotten)
cell phone charge
camera/charger

What do you guys think I'm missing??? I know that there are some Mommies and Mommies-to-be that read my blog and I'd love your input. What did you take that was worthless and just took up space?

Lunch Date!

2011-03-24T13:00:00.000-05:00

I was so excited to be able to meet up with two fellow bloggers for lunch yesterday! Paige (from Mommy & Charli), Erin (from Howell's Happenings), and I all met at a great restaurant in BG for lunch on Wednesday! It was such a great lunch and I was so glad to be able to hang out with these two great girls!

Erin and I went to school together but we were in different grades and had different friends and neither of us had ever met Paige, so it was great to be able to take that time to get to know each other a little better!

It is so fun to be able to meet people and already know so much about them! We decided at the end of our lunch that we couldn't wait to get together again soon!

Girls, thanks so much for meeting up and I hope that you all had as good a time as I did!

Our Anniversary Present to Each Other

2011-03-24T08:11:00.000-05:00

So... Mine and Drew's anniversary was a little over a month ago and we decided that we would go together and buy each other one big gift. My laptop was dying a slow cruel death so we decided that we'd get a new computer and Drew decided that we needed a Mac. Personally, I wasn't sure, but since we've gotten it I have really enjoyed it and found it quite user friendly.

I still have no idea what all it can do, but the lady at the Apple Store assured me that I will love it and so far she's been right.

This is the keyboard. Actually, we got two because we wanted the little number pad on the side. This little one is wireless and so far has been the only one that we've used.

This is the mouse. Pretty crazy, huh? I'm pretty sure it looks like a post-it note but it is the coolest thing ever. Apple Girl demonstrated it and we were sold immediately.

Callie's Room Progress

2011-03-23T20:35:00.000-05:00

Callie's room is actually making progress. We have had all of our showers and now we are in the process of trying to put everything away and making sure that everything is organized.

In fact, my mom is coming this weekend to help me. She is a much better organizer than me and I'll be glad to have her help.

Hairbow holders that I made with ribbon and horse shoes. I'm actually quite proud of these and am so pleased with how they turned out. At Mom & Dad's, we pretty much have a never ending supply of worn horse shoes. Needless to say, these were cheap decorations.

This is the only piece of furniture that we had to purchase for the room. It doesn't match the crib completely but we really like it and think that it will be very helpful. We are also planning to use it as a changing table. There isn't a lot of wall space in the room for furniture, so we're multi tasking the pieces that we have.

The crib and window. Like I said, we're making progress but we are not any where close to being finished.

And again. These pictures were taken in the daylight so the colors are pretty accurate in these pictures. I love them and think that all the pink accents look pretty darned cute. Needless to say, I'm pleased :)

Wordless Wednesday - Baby Girl's First Boots

2011-03-23T19:57:00.001-05:00

Thank you so much to Brittany! We love them and can't wait till our baby girl can wear them around :)

Scooter

2011-03-09T20:47:00.000-06:00

I haven't had a good Scoot Dogg post lately and thought that I needed to include one, especially since she is laying in the floor staring at me waiting for me to play with her. I told you guys all about our massive amounts of snow that we got a month or so ago and didn't put up any pictures of her playing in it.

She really likes to play in the snow.

Watching. That red bag is what I always take home to WKY and she knows that when I start putting stuff in it we are going somewhere. She basically attaches herself to my leg and will not give me any peace until we're in the car.

My sweet girl... I will always love her like my first born :)

Customer Service

2011-03-08T13:46:00.000-06:00

One reason that I really like living in a small(er) town in the south is hospitality.

Today, I had planned to go home, let Scooter out, and eat a healthy lunch. Well, you know what they say about plans... they don't often work out. I had noticed this weekend that one of the tires of my car seemed low and today I decided that I really needed to take it to the tire place and let them check it out. When I got there, the man recognized me (this is where I always take my car, they're the only ones who have really ever serviced it over the past four years) and asked how he could help. I told him my predicament and asked what I needed to do. He checked the tire and said that it had 10 pounds of air in it, they usually have 35. He filled it with air and asked me to bring it back tomorrow and drop it off so that they could check the tire and see what the problem was. I asked him how much I owed him and he laughed and said "nothing, we never charge for stuff like that". Then he asked, "your name is Kelsey, right? Kelsey Richey?"

Cool... I don't know his name and the only reason he knows mine is because I'm a customer. Looks like I'll be a customer for a long time.

After I left the tire place, I didn't have time to run home (it is about a 20 minute one way trip to our house) so I gave in to my guilty pleasure and went to Rally's. I ordered the usual, Rally burger with cheese, french fries, and a Diet Coke... Medium sized (definitely not a healthy lunch...). I waited a few minutes before I got my food and when the boy at the window handed it to me and said "we have replaced your medium fry with a large due to you having to wait." Huh? I was only there for a maximum of 5 minutes... That was completely unnecessary...

So I went and parked in a lot to eat my lunch and it was amazing. I'm pretty sure that my LARGE fries had come straight out of a fryer because they were so hot that they burned my mouth. YUM YUM YUM...

Anyway, two completely different industries with two great examples of customer service. They pretty much made my lunch hour. Oh, and if you've some how managed to never eat Rally's french fries, you need to change that. They are amazing with no salt or ketchup needed...

Oh, and yes, I realize... This post is completely contradictory to my previous post regarding feeling fat... I promise, I don't eat like this everyday... P-R-O-M-I-S-E...

Thank you...

2011-03-07T22:09:00.000-06:00

Thank you guys, you really are all amazing.

February 12, 2011 with some of my best friends... Oh, and if you can't tell, I'm the non-blonde!

I believe: If pregnancy was easy...

Men would do it.

The Dark Side...

2011-03-07T13:51:00.000-06:00

I don't really know how to start this post or even really what I plan to say. All I can say is that its probably going to be a downer and if you don't want to read it, I completely understand.

I guess what I can do is start with a question. Have you guys noticed that there aren't any pictures of me on here pregnant? Well, there's a reason for that, mostly because I hate them all. They are horrible and more so than that, I look horrible. I have actually had three showers so far and have access to pictures from two of them but I just can't bring myself to post them and honestly, I don't really even want to look at them.

My little cousin took maternity pictures of me and Drew on Saturday. It will be a struggle to make myself buy them. I just don't like myself right now.

This little girl, I love her, but I'm finding it hard to love this version of myself. I know I haven't gained a lot and honestly as of Friday, I had gained 24 pounds. My scale said 161.

I'm just struggling. And to top it all off, the person who told me to "get up off my fat ass" when I was 26 weeks pregnant made the comment to my husband this weekend that "pregnancy had made me lazy". WTF? Are you serious? I guess maybe it has made me lazy. I mean, I'm only working 40 hours a week, going to the gym 3-4 times a week, and managing my household. I only cook dinner 4 or 5 nights a week and keep all the laundry clean, folded, and put away. I guess I am lazy.

FML...

Tasty Tuesday: Southwest Chicken Skillet

2011-03-01T20:00:00.000-06:00

At our house, we call this "Rotel Chicken & Rice" and it is a super easy and quick dinner that Drew and I both love!

1 tablespoon Pure Wesson Vegetable Oil
20 ounces boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup long-grain white rice, uncooked
2 cans (10 oz each) RoTel Diced in Sauce - Tomatoes & Green Chilies, undrained
1/2 cup water
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (1 cup = 4 oz)
2 tablespoons green onions, thinly sliced, optional
Sour cream, optional

Directions

Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken; cook 5 minutes, or until chicken pieces are no longer pink in centers, stirring frequently.
Add the rice, tomatoes with their sauce and the water to skillet; stir. Bring to boil; cover skillet with lid. Reduce heat to low; simmer 20 minutes, or until rice is tender. Fluff rice with fork.
Sprinkle with cheese and onions; cover. Cook an additional 5 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Serve topped with the sour cream, if desired.

We ate this with chips and salsa but its also great with Refried Beans! I actually love them, but Drew is not a fan, so if I fixed them I'd be the only one to eat them. Which is obviously just an invitation to eat the whole can! HAHA!

One Spoiled Little Girl...

2011-02-27T21:41:00.000-06:00

Today was our second shower for Miss Callie and she sure made out like a bandit. The shower was hosted by Drew's Church in WKY and when we counted the number of gifts on the list there were 45 (yes, that means I am going to be writing 45 thank you notes, but wow, it will be worth it!) gifts!

It was insane. The princess got lots of clothes and LOTS of diapers. Drew and I were thrilled because to this point we hadn't received many diapers.

The gifts after we condensed them enough too make the trip home.

After going through all the boxes... I promise my dog is not possessed, even though she definitely looks it in this picture.

Her closets, yes she has two and yes, the first one is full of clothes. The bottom wrack is all clothes from Newborn to 9 months.

These letters are over the closet door on the right. When you walk in her room and turn around, there are three doors, two closet doors and a door to the hall. These are over the center door. Her very uncrafty mother made these :)

We have been fortunate enough to borrow this crib from Drew's brother and sister-in-law. Their two children used this crib and now they are allowing us too. We are extremely appreciative and think that it is beautiful!

I found these prints on Etsy and they are from Callie's bedding. Pardon the horrible yellow color. The yellow in her room does horrible things to pictures, but they glared pretty bad anytime I used the flash. At any rate, these hang over her crib.

Happy Anniversary!

2011-02-16T13:17:00.000-06:00

Happy Anniversary to my sweet hubby!

As of today at about 3:00, we have been married for 3 years!

I can't wait to see what the next three years have in store for us :)

Wordless Wednesday - A Baby Girl's First Horse

2011-01-26T08:32:00.006-06:00

Tasty Tuesday - Papa Murphy's

2011-01-25T08:23:00.013-06:00

Have you all ever eaten at Papa Murphy's pizza? One just opened here in BG and Drew picked us up a pizza on Thursday night. It was wonderful! We got a stuffed pizza that had sausage, pepperoni, onions, mushrooms, and black olives inside of it.

The way that Papa Murphy's works is they prepare the pizza for you and then send it home with you wrapped in plastic. When you get home you cook it in your oven and have it for dinner. Since our pizza was very thick, we had to cook it for about 25 minutes but it was absolutely worth it!

Our pizza before we cooked it...

The finished product... I can't believe that Drew let me get a picture of it before he started chowing down... Like I said, it was awesome!

Needless to say, we will be repeat customers!

Snow Days

2011-01-24T08:05:00.033-06:00

Well friends, it snowed here last week. Not really a whole lot but it did snow enough to cause a big mess.

This is the main road through town at a few minutes after four on a Thursday afternoon.

The same road just a little farther out of town. We have to drive this road for about 10 miles from our work. Luckily it is a pretty main street and is usually not very icy or snowy.

Oh, and I definitely took these pictures while driving. I'm a smart one, let me tell you!

This is the country road that we turn off onto to get to our house. Notice that its a little more white? I was in Drew's F150 and if I started going too fast (much more than 15 or 20) it fishtailed on the street. Fun Times!

We live at the top of a hill and I made the mistake of stopping to get the mail and of course snapping this picture. I ended up having to put the truck in 4 wheel drive just to make it to the top. Drew was driving my car and had to try this hill about 5 times before he made it. We were both getting very tempted to just leave it at the bottom of the driveway until the next morning...

And this is what the little car looked like when it finally made it to the garage! Quite Snowy! Needless to say, we car-pooled the next morning in the truck. The little blue car says that it is not a snow driving vehicle!

Did you all get snow? I know that I am getting very tired of it and absolutely can't wait until spring! I'm beginning to wonder though if it will ever get here :(

Three Day Weekend!

2011-01-14T16:24:00.000-06:00

YIPPPEEEEE!!!! NO WORK MONDAY!

Sorry for the bad blogging this week guys, its really not been a very exciting week here with the Richeys... Had I blogged, I probably would have told you 1: its cold 2: life is boring 3: there's snow all week long... Anyway, I'm sure you already knew that...

Oh well, I've got a little more than 35 minutes left on the old work clock and then I'm outta here, so I hope that y'all have a great weekend too!

KB & Baby - Week 25

2011-01-07T15:25:00.001-06:00

How Far Along: 25 Weeks

Size of baby: Callie Girl is the size of an Eggplant!

Total Weight Gain/Loss: By my scale this morning - 15 pounds...

Maternity Clothes: ummm, yes... definitely. All maternity pants and even some tops. They just tend to be more comfortable at this point. I am wearing Drew's t-shirts to the gym and they work pretty well.

Gender: G-I-R-L!

Movement: YES! We have decided that she is already a WKU fan because we were at the Western game last night and she was rolling around all over the place. It was hard to concentrate with all of her movement!

Sleep: I am having crazy dreams which tend to wake me up at night, but other than that, its not bad!

What I miss: Honestly, nothing... We are hanging in there just fine!

Cravings: no real cravings or aversions... I seem to be eating all of the same foods that I ate before pregnancy, which is nice.

Symptoms: I feel great and am really enjoying my pregnancy at this point! Can't wait for my little girl to join us though :)

Best Moment this week: Drew and I are going furniture shopping in the morning to try and order baby girl a changing table/dresser. We are going to be able to borrow a crib, so hopefully we'll be able to find another piece of furniture that matches it.

Sorry that there aren't any pictures in the last few posts... Hopefully I will get some soon and I'll be able to show you guys my massive baby bump! It is actually pretty comical :-)

Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know

2011-01-06T14:34:00.001-06:00

A friend sent me this article today in my e-mail and said she found it interesting. I read it and agree so I thought I'd share...

Things Babies Born in 2011 Will Never Know
http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/111745/things-babies-born-in-2011-will-never-know?mod=family-kids_parents

Huffington Post recently put up a story called You're Out: 20 Things That Became Obsolete This Decade. It's a great retrospective on the technology leaps we've made since the new century began, and it got me thinking about the difference today's technology will make in the lives of tomorrow's kids.

I've used some of their ideas and added some of my own to make the list below: Do you think kids born in 2011 will recognize any of the following?

Video tape: Starting this year, the news stories we produce here at Money Talks have all been shot, edited, and distributed to TV stations without ever being on any kind of tape. Not only that, the tape-less broadcast camera we use today offers much higher quality than anything that could have been imagined 10 years ago -- and cost less than the lens on the camera we were using previously.

Travel agents: While not dead today, this profession is one of many that's been decimated by the Internet. When it's time for their honeymoon, will those born in 2011 be able to find one?

The separation of work and home: When you're carrying an email-equipped computer in your pocket, it's not just your friends who can find you -- so can your boss. For kids born this year, the wall between office and home will be blurry indeed.

Books, magazines, and newspapers: Like video tape, words written on dead trees are on their way out. Sure, there may be books -- but for those born today, stores that exist solely to sell them will be as numerous as record stores are now.

Movie rental stores: You actually got in your car and drove someplace just to rent a movie?
Watches: Maybe as quaint jewelry, but the correct time is on your smartphone, which is pretty much always in your hand.

Paper maps: At one time these were available free at every gas station. They're practically obsolete today, and the next generation will probably have to visit a museum to find one.

Wired phones: Why would you pay $35 every month to have a phone that plugs into a wall? For those born today, this will be a silly concept.

Long distance: Thanks to the Internet, the days of paying more to talk to somebody in the next city, state, or even country are limited.

Newspaper classifieds: The days are gone when you have to buy a bunch of newsprint just to see what's for sale.

Dial-up Internet: While not everyone is on broadband, it won't be long before dial-up Internet goes the way of the plug-in phone.

Encyclopedias: Imagine a time when you had to buy expensive books that were outdated before the ink was dry. This will be a nonsense term for babies born today.

Forgotten friends: Remember when an old friend would bring up someone you went to high school with, and you'd say, "Oh yeah, I forgot about them!" The next generation will automatically be in touch with everyone they've ever known even slightly via Facebook.

Forgotten anything else: Kids born this year will never know what it was like to stand in a bar and incessantly argue the unknowable. Today the world's collective knowledge is on the computer in your pocket or purse. And since you have it with you at all times, why bother remembering anything?

The evening news: The news is on 24/7. And if you're not home to watch it, that's OK -- it's on the smartphone in your pocket.

CDs: First records, then 8-track, then cassette, then CDs -- replacing your music collection used to be an expensive pastime. Now it's cheap(er) and as close as the nearest Internet connection.

Film cameras: For the purist, perhaps, but for kids born today, the word "film" will mean nothing. In fact, even digital cameras -- both video and still -- are in danger of extinction as our pocket computers take over that function too.

Yellow and White Pages: Why in the world would you need a 10-pound book just to find someone?

Catalogs: There's no need to send me a book in the mail when I can see everything you have for sale anywhere, anytime. If you want to remind me to look at it, send me an email.

Fax machines: Can you say "scan," ".pdf" and "email?"

One picture to a frame: Such a waste of wall/counter/desk space to have a separate frame around each picture. Eight gigabytes of pictures and/or video in a digital frame encompassing every person you've ever met and everything you've ever done -- now, that's efficient. Especially compared to what we used to do: put our friends and relatives together in a room and force them to watch what we called a "slide show" or "home movies."

Wires: Wires connecting phones to walls? Wires connecting computers, TVs, stereos, and other electronics to each other? Wires connecting computers to the Internet? To kids born in 2011, that will make as much sense as an electric car trailing an extension cord.

Hand-written letters: For that matter, hand-written anything. When was the last time you wrote cursive? In fact, do you even know what the word "cursive" means? Kids born in 2011 won't -- but they'll put you to shame on a tiny keyboard.

Talking to one person at a time: Remember when it was rude to be with one person while talking to another on the phone? Kids born today will just assume that you're supposed to use texting to maintain contact with five or six other people while pretending to pay attention to the person you happen to be physically next to.

Retirement plans: Yes, Johnny, there was a time when all you had to do was work at the same place for 20 years and they'd send you a check every month for as long as you lived. In fact, some companies would even pay your medical bills, too!

Mail: What's left when you take the mail you receive today, then subtract the bills you could be paying online, the checks you could be having direct-deposited, and the junk mail you could be receiving as junk email? Answer: A bloated bureaucracy that loses billions of taxpayer dollars annually.

Commercials on TV: They're terrifically expensive, easily avoided with DVRs, and inefficiently target mass audiences. Unless somebody comes up with a way to force you to watch them -- as with video on the Internet -- who's going to pay for them?

Commercial music radio: Smartphones with music-streaming programs like Pandora are a better solution that doesn't include ads screaming between every song.

Hiding: Not long ago, if you didn't answer your home phone, that was that -- nobody knew if you were alive or dead, much less where you might be. Now your phone is not only in your pocket, it can potentially tell everyone -- including advertisers -- exactly where you are.

I thought it was pretty interesting. What a different world my Callie girl will grow up in than I did...

I'm Becoming a Spaz...

2011-01-05T13:05:00.000-06:00

So I'm sitting at my desk this morning and I noticed that Callie has been awfully still... I haven't really felt her all morning. I silently start freaking out and pushing on my stomach trying to make her move. She doesn't. I wait for an hour, stewing about what I should do "wait till tomorrow? call the doctor? drink a coke?" and then finally she whollops my insides right behind my belly button... Not once, but twice. Two huge kicks. I tell her "Thank You" and continue on with my day.

Is this what motherhood is all about? Worrying about this little girl for the rest of my life? I can't imagine that I can be so worried about a little person that I've never met. Crazy...

What's also crazy is that we are at 25 weeks... Only 105 more days to go. W-O-W... Time flies!

Christmas Fun!

2010-12-30T08:12:00.000-06:00

I think that I mentioned in the previous post, but Santa sure spoiled the Richeys this year. He spoiled Drew, he spoiled me, and he sure spoiled Miss Callie. I really think that its funny that a little unborn Princess can receive so many gifts. I guess that just goes to show that everybody is already as crazy about her as we are.

She got these Christmas outfits a month or so ago from her Mimi (my mom). I really think they're quite cute and we have our fingers tightly crossed that they will fit her next year at Christmas. I love the little dress and can't wait to see her in it with some white tights and black shoes. I'm not sure if you can tell your not but the trim along the bottom is fur. I guess you're never too young for fur!

Callie also got quite the assortment of bags. One from her Mimi, one from her Aunt Angela and Uncle Keil, and the last from her Aunt Lora. I am excited that we will have them and they'll be able to have different uses. The backpack and the smaller bag in the set seem like they will be great for trips to dinner or quick trips out. The other two big bags will be awesome when we go on long all day adventures! They are so cute and I can't wait to put all kinds of fun stuff in them :)

Callie wasn't the only one who got a fun toy for Christmas. After eyeing Angela's market tote that she got for a wedding present, I finally have one of my own! I can't think of a more perfect gift that she and my brother could have gotten me and I'm so excited about putting it to use.

Like I said, Santa spoiled us rotten. We felt very loved and very blessed!

Grown Up Christmas Presents...

2010-12-29T08:49:00.000-06:00

Isn't it odd how as you grow up, the things that you want for Christmas change? I can remember when I was younger all I wanted was toys, just like any kid. In my teens, it was clothes, CD's, and purses... Now, I do good to even think of things that I want for Christmas.

At this point in time in my life (being 6 months pregnant), clothes were completely out of the question. Not only did I not ask for any, but I explicitly told people not to buy them for me. I did ask for a bottle of perfume for Christmas and a little jewelry, but other than that, not much. The few things that I asked for might surprise you:

A Kindle, from Amazon.Com. This one isn't that weird, but let's just say that I'm already addicted to it. I read yesterday all during my lunch break because it was WAY too cold to go outside!

These rugs are very cool (and kind of pricey, thus them being on my Christmas Wish List). They are from LL Bean and they are called "Water Hog Rugs". Apparently they are supposed to be great on hardwood floors and they're supposed to keep dirt from being tracked through the house. Mom has a huge one in front of her door in from the garage and swears by it. So I got three :) I got them in tan... One is huge (also in front of my garage door), one is small and crescent shaped (in front of my sliding glass doors that Scooter goes in and out), and one has her name on it and her bowls sit on them. FUN!

And finally, I got a Bissell Spot Bot! It is actually the pet version, but I think that it will also be great for the Newborn Babe Version. Or at least, that's what I'm hoping :) I think that Drew had a little help on this one, because I had never told him that I wanted one. I had mentioned, however, to my mom and sister-in-law that it might be pretty cool to have one so I'm not sure which of them spilled the beans... Thanks!

Anyway, my gifts are perfect! They are things that I had been wanting but probably would not have spent the money on for myself. Not too mention, I'm thinking that they'll both help to make my life a little bit simpler... And really, isn't that what we all want for Christmas?

Cruel & Unusual Punishment...

2010-12-28T08:22:00.000-06:00

Well, maybe not really... Maybe it was just bad planning on my part...

I definitely had my OB appointment yesterday afternoon. Baby Callie is doing just fine, but honestly, stepping on those scales almost killed me. I told my doctor that apparently I had eaten WAY too many Christmas cookies...

Uhhh... I think I should've scheduled the appointment for next Monday and NOT yesterday!

Anyway, have a great Tuesday and surely I'll get a good Christmas update on here soon!

Thankful Thursday - Today I Am Just Thankful...

2010-12-16T10:26:00.000-06:00

Christmas time has a tendency to drive me absolutely insane. It seems like it is so busy and that nobody really gets a chance to enjoy it. Drew and I have had to merge both of our family's Christmas activities together and it seems like nobody (our parents and even ourselves) is willing to give. We want to continue doing exactly what we did pre-marriage even though its really not possible.

All the shopping wears me out. I feel like half the time I don't even know what to buy people. This year I think that I've done a good job, but buying for people that you don't really know is hard because you just don't know what to buy and if they'll even like/use what you've bought.

Stress... Drew and I have stressed completely. Between Callie and the normal holiday anxiety, it has been kind of tense at our house. Trying to keep everybody happy. Trying to not make the in-laws upset about one thing or another. Trying to be 15 places at once.

But what I need to really try and focus on is how lucky I am. I have a roof over my head, food on my table, and (multiple) warm coats. There are so many people in the world who do not have those luxuries.

My post from yesterday had pictures of me reading a Christmas story to about 60 kindergartners. These children come from one probably the lowest income school in the BG City School System. They come to the bank once a year and we throw them a Christmas party complete with Christmas stories, snacks, and a visit from Santa Claus including a small gift. Let me tell you about a couple of the stories that I heard about after they left:

A set of twin girls. One of my co-workers saw these two blond headed little girls playing in the street in the cold. He was driving, stopped and turned his car around, and told his son that they were going to do something for this family for Christmas. Turns out there is at least one older child (maybe two, I can't remember) and that the children were basically on their own, fending for themselves. The parents are idiots and not really in the picture.
A boy who seemed to have some sort of mental disability. Apparently his great uncle is also his dad. Yes, you read that right. A man impregnated his niece and this boy is the result of that act. Also, this boy lives in a house that is infested with black mold. The boy is continuously sick and the family is about to be evicted.
This isn't really a story I heard but something I witnessed, one boy was handed his Christmas present and when they were told that they would open them, he didn't know what to do with it. He sat and looked at the box. Turned it from side to side. His teach finally had to open the end of the box for him so that he could know what to do with it.

Times are hard my friends, but they will never get any easier for these children. How do children like these step out of this cycle in an attempt to better themselves? Do they even know that there are things that are better? Do they think that its attainable? I don't know.

I just know that they sure made me thankful for the opportunities that I have to take care of my family and in the spirit of Christmas, they made me thankful for the opportunities that I am given that allow me to be charitable.

Wordless Wednesday - The Funny Faces You Make When Reading to Kindergarteners...

2010-12-15T21:54:00.000-06:00

Clearly I was quite enthused :)

Tasty Tuesday... Couldn't resist...

2010-12-14T08:35:00.002-06:00

Sunday after Drew and I went and attempted to register for Miss Callie, we came home and I cooked dinner. It was a cold, snowy night so we were in the mood for warm, spicy food! I made these Sour Cream Enchiladas that I found a year or so ago on AllRecipes.com. They are absolutely fabulous and one of mine and Drew's favorite dinners. Apparently, Drew was a picky eater when he was a child so its probably a surprise that he would eat something like this but between the two of us we definitely made a dent in the pan! It is nice though because there are definitely enough left overs for dinner at least one more night!

Sour Cream Enchiladas

Ingredients

1 bunch cilantro
1 cup sour cream
2 (7 ounce) cans jalapeno salsa
2 (7 ounce) cans prepared green chile salsa
2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves, cooked and shredded
1 onion
12 (6 inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese

Directions

To Make Sour Cream Mixture: In a blender or food processor, puree cilantro, sour cream, jalapeno salsa and 1/2 can of the green chile salsa. Set aside.

To Make Chicken Mixture: In a large bowl, combine shredded chicken, onion and the remaining 1 1/2 cans of green chile salsa. Mix well.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

Heat tortillas in conventional or microwave oven until soft. Pour enough of the sour cream mixture into a 9x13 inch baking dish to coat the bottom. Place 2 heaping tablespoonfuls of the chicken mixture in each tortilla, roll up and place seam side down in the baking dish. Pour remaining sour cream mixture over all and top with shredded cheese.

Cover dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 30 minutes, or until dish is heated through and bubbling.

Also, I have had this Pampered Chef Rectangular Baker for a year and had not used it until a couple of weekends ago. I finally made a pan of brownies in it and now I'm hooked! I cooked my enchiladas in it last night and was absolutely amazed at how easily it cleaned up. I just scraped some of the stuff off with the scraper and then wiped it clean with a dish rag. Wow, it was easy!

Anyway, I hope y'all are having a great Tuesday!

A Snowy Weekend Wrap-Up!

2010-12-13T09:32:00.000-06:00

Good Morning!

Do you all have snow there like we do here in BG? It is a mess! The county schools are all closed and WKU was even on a half day delay for finals. The biggest event for this weekend was driving to Murray KY to watch my brother graduate with a degree from Murray State. I am so proud of him! He joined the Navy right after high school and since he has been out of the service, he has come home and worked full time and went to school full time in order to get his degree. I know that he will be very glad that it is over!

Sunday, Drew and I tackled the crazy task of starting our gift registries. Well, actually I had already started them on line but we went to two stores and went crazy with the little scanner thing. Registering is so hard. Being a first time mom who really doesn't have much experience with babies, I am clueless! I know that I have a lot to learn and am so glad to have "Mommy Blogs" that I follow and have learned from. We also tried to buy things that were gender neutral and could hopefully be used by Callie's future siblings. Do you guys have any suggestions? What items could you not live without when your kiddos were babies?

Somethings we registered for were:

Fisher Price- Laugh & Learn Playcenter (Drew had a hard time deciding on this... he ended up picking two that he liked and then I made the decision to go with the farm themed one).

I have seen these Soothing Seahorses on lots of blogs and scanned it the minute I saw it.

My mom and I made a trip to "Babys R Us" a few weeks ago and the girl that we talked to told us that this Chicco Travel System is absolutely the way to go. Since then, I have been stalking moms in department stores with this and asking their thoughts. Everybody really seems to approve!

A Tummy Time Mat. This is the Baby Einstein Baby Neptune Ocean Adventure Gym.

So what do y'all think? Are these good things to register for? Obviously, these are just some of the high points but please, let me know what you really liked. Also, I was so glad that Drew and I had our iPhones. We were looking up the items as we went along seeing which ones did or didn't have good ratings. That was such a great resource for us!

Ugh...

2010-12-10T16:36:00.000-06:00

Well friends, I did it again... I disappeared off the face of the Earth.

So sorry... Being pregnant has made me more susceptible to colds and allergy crap that I have ever been and its really wiping me out. I haven't been productive in the evenings at all. Hopefully it will get better and I'll be able to update you on what's going on in BG...

Funny story though:

Drew went to the Titans vs Colts game last night in Nashville with some people that he works with and they put him up in a really nice hotel. I texted him at 10 and said I was going to bed (basically so he didn't call and wake me up). At 1AM my phone rings and its my husband telling me that there's somebody there that he wants me to talk to. WHAT?!?!?! So I am telling him no, no, no when this other voice (that I don't know) comes on the phone and talks to me. He says "tell me which of these songs that you like better "Good Morning Beautiful" or "I Got a Brand New Girlfriend" and I told him to pick. This person proceeds to sing the chorus to "Good Morning Beautiful" into the phone to me. It was AWESOME and I told him it was worth being woke up for! Drew gets the phone back and says "Kelsey! I'm hanging out with Steve Holy!" who is the singer who sings both of those songs on the radio... CRAZY. I guess it just goes to show that you never know who you'll see in Nashville.

Oh, and for a little Christmas cheer for you all!

Nursery Theme

2010-12-01T10:48:00.000-06:00

Well, Miss Callie now has baby bedding. Or at least, it has been ordered.

It is definitely more pink than I had originally planned but I do really like it. I wanted something with farm animals, more specifically, I wanted something with horses. This was the best that I could find that wasn't too boyish.

Anyway, I really like it... Drew really likes it... My mom and sister-in-law really like it... So, I can't wait to see it when UPS brings it to my house! Hopefully it won't be long :)

Christmas Decorations

2010-11-25T22:11:00.000-06:00

Well, I broke down last night and put up my Christmas tree. It has made our house seem so homey and we have really enjoyed putting it up. Drew and I always work on it together so that makes for a fun activity for the two of us as well.

This year, I decorated our mantle. The three stockings are for Drew, Scooter, & Me. Next year, we will have to get another stocking to hang for Miss Callie. It will be fun to celebrate Christmas and include her in all the festivities next year!

Finally, this wreath is on the door. Its not like anybody ever drives by our house (we live at the end of a dead end road in the middle of no where, so there is never any traffic going past our house). I also bought two little light up Christmas trees that will also go on our porch. I wasn't able to get them plugged in tonight, because our extension cords are all in our detached garage and it was POURING down rain.

Anyway, I hope that you all have had a wonderful Thanksgiving today! I am working tomorrow and then heading to WKY for a weekend with my family. We didn't get to see them today, so I'm looking forward to spending as much time with them as possible this weekend.

Truthful Tuesday...

2010-11-23T13:13:00.000-06:00

Good Afternoon Friends :)

I may have driven through WKU's campus today looking at all the cute college students getting ready to go home for Thanksgiving and gotten really jealous. I may also really be wishing that I could not be working today... For that matter, I may be wishing that I was off the rest of the week.
I may have driven through a car lot on my way back from lunch today. Not that I'm going to buy anything, but just because. I may have looked at one of these:

or maybe even one of these:

I may be wearing a maternity dress today. It may be the coolest thing ever because I am soooo comfortable. I may also have developed a "Baby Bump" in a weekend. It is crazy, I've got to get pictures, I swear its like this thing just implanted itself to my belly in my sleep!
I may have completely finished my Christmas shopping in one weekend. Yeah, I may be that awesome...
Drew and I may have paid people to cut down 45 trees in my yard in the past two days. I may be shocked that there are still trees and may be wondering just exactly how there were that many trees there in the first place. I mean, it was probably only on an acre and a half...
I may have been fighting the urge for the past five days to put up my Christmas tree. I may stop fighting it tomorrow night... When that happens, I may post pictures :)

Happy Tuesday friends! At least its a short week!

What's In A Name???

2010-11-21T20:59:00.000-06:00

Many of you have asked what Baby Girl Richey's name is going to be. Last week, I mentioned that she was going to have a special name that she will share with somebody who is very special. This special person shared her name with her grandmother.

This person is my Nanna. She lived pretty much next door to me until I was about 16 and was always the person that I went to when I needed advice. She has always made me feel like I was the most special person in the world and she has always been one of the most special people in my world.

Her name is Callie Elizabeth Bales. Baby Richey's name is Callie Isabella Richey! We love it and we know that we will have a beautiful baby girl with a wonderful, meaningful name!

The problem is, this is what her room looks like. YIKES... Looks like her mommy and daddy had better get on the stick, huh? First of all, it will not stay green. Second of all, its completely full of stuff! This is the current "we don't know what to do with it, so we're just putting it in that room" room. O-M-G.. Nothing like a little stress.

A good thing though, is that she's accumulating quite the wardrobe... Including this cute little outfit that was given to her by my mom on the day that we found out that our Peanut was really Callie!

Five Question Friday!

2010-11-19T08:40:00.000-06:00

Hello Friends (and Friday!)

I thought that I would like up to Mama M's Five Question Friday today! If you have time today, be sure to answer the questions and link up to her page too!

1. What Christmas song do you loathe?
I don't think that I really loathe any Christmas song, but I don't enjoy hearing them very early. For example, hearing Christmas songs right now... GETS ON MY NERVES... I strongly feel like we should celebrate one holiday at a time and since its not even Thanksgiving yet, we should focus on that!

2. Do you and your significant other cuddle at night or sleep on opposite sides of the bed?
We cuddle at first but then we usually retire to our opposite sides of the bed. I do cuddle and snuggle with Scooter though, because she usually insists on sleeping against my stomach or between my legs. She is odd :)

3. Have you ever had surgery?
Sort of, I guess, but not anything normal or exciting. I actually lost part of my finger as a child in an accident and it had to be fixed. Ok, that sounds weird. Here's the truth... When I was four, 1/3 of my middle finger was bit off by a horse. Seriously, this crap can't be made up. Oh, and it was on Thanksgiving Day...

4. When do you typically have your holiday shopping done?
Usually by the middle of December. I have started a little and Mom and I are going this weekend, but I've had other things on my mind :)

5. If money were not an issue (and you HAD to pick something), what would your ultimate luxury item be?
I would have a really good show horse with a really good trainer! You guys are surprised right? Horses are pretty much my go to wish!

I hope that you guys have a great weekend! I know that I sure am glad this week is over, it definitely has not been one to write home about...

Oh, and for those who have asked, Baby Girl Richey does have a name! She even has her first monogrammed item coming in the mail and I will put together a post about it as soon as possible because her name is very special. She shares her name with one of my favorite people in the world!

Stylish Blogger Award!

2010-11-17T09:13:00.000-06:00

My friend Kara, at The Pickerill Life, has given me an award! Now, I must say that I feel completely undeserving, seeing as I have been a horrible blogger and blog friend lately. For that I apologize, but do promise to do better in the upcoming future!

Anyway, Kara is such a sweet heart and I have really enjoyed following the progress of her pregnancy with Miss Emma, because she is a few months ahead of me!

The Rules

1. Thank and link back to who gave you the award.

2. Share seven things about yourself.

3.Pass it along to seven blogs you've recently discovered and enjoy!

4. Let the recipients know that you've left them an award.

Now...7 lovely things about myself. 

I work at a bank and really like it most of the time. I would like to be able to work part time after I have Baby Girl Richey, but I'm pretty sure that won't be a possibility with my job which is a bummer.
I am a bad blogger. Usually its because I don't have anything to write about, but lately its been because I haven't had time. I have lots of things to write about and even have cool pictures to share (like from our trip to San Diego) I just haven't done it!
Drew and I really love our new house. We are finally feeling comfortable in it and we have enjoyed decorating it over the last few weeks. Drew's mom has also done some landscaping for us! She loves it and since she's retired she can come up and work during the day so she has been given full rein to do whatever she wants!
I really thought that I was going to be having a boy. I was absolutely shocked when the ultrasound showed that she was all girl!
I have no idea how I want her nursery to be. NO IDEA... I'm completely at a loss.
I have finally started wearing maternity pants. I just decided that being comfortable was much more important than wearing my old jeans. COMFORT IS KEY!
I have enjoyed going back to the gym, even though I was pretty sure that spin class was going to kill me last night. I really didn't want to go but I knew that I'd be glad I did... I was... so I'll go again tonight!

And now... 7 other lovely ladies for you to check out!

Jenna @ Jenna's Jargon: http://lifeonthecircletranch.blogspot.com/
Mayra "Bananas" @ Life is Bananas: http://littlemayra.blogspot.com/
Erin @ Howell Happenings: http://kentuckynewlyweds.blogspot.com/
Paige @ Mommy to Charli: http://mommy2charli.blogspot.com/
Brittany @ Treasuring the Little Things: http://blakeandbritt.blogspot.com/
Jen @ Walking By Faith: http://jenburchell.blogspot.com/
Julie @ and I Thought I Loved You Then: http://jvanddv.blogspot.com/

Tickled Pink!

2010-11-09T08:30:00.001-06:00

Well, my friends, its official!

Baby Richey is a

G I R L !

We are so excited to welcome her into our home in just a few short months!

Pink or Blue??

2010-11-08T09:22:00.000-06:00

Good Morning! Today is an exciting day for the Richeys from BG!

Today is the day that we find out if Peanut is a boy or a girl...

So what are your thoughts? Will we be decorating a little boy or little girl nursery??

Got This E-mail Today and It's Too Funny To Not Share...

2010-10-26T09:26:00.000-05:00

E-N-J-O-Y!

Last week was my birthday and I didn't feel very well waking up on that morning.. I went downstairs for breakfast hoping my wife would be pleasant and say, 'Happy Birthday!', and possibly have a small present for me.

As it turned out, she barely said good morning, let alone 'Happy Birthday.'

I thought.... Well, that's marriage for you, but the kids.... They will remember. My kids came bounding down stairs to breakfast and didn't say a word..

So when I left for the office, I felt pretty low and somewhat despondent.

As I walked into my office, my secretary Jane said, 'Good Morning Boss, and by the way Happy Birthday!'

It felt a little better that at least someone had remembered. I worked until one o'clock , when Jane knocked on my door and said, 'You know, It's such a beautiful day outside, and it is your Birthday, what do you say we go out to lunch, just you and me..'

I said, 'Thanks, Jane, that's the greatest thing I've heard all day. Let's go !'

We went to lunch. But we didn't go where we normally would go. She chose instead at a quiet bistro with a private table. We had two martinis each and I enjoyed the meal tremendously.

On the way back to the office, Jane said, 'You know, It's such a beautiful day... We don't need to go straight back to the office, Do We ?'

I responded, 'I guess not. What do you have in mind ?'

She said, 'Let's drop by my apartment, it's just around the corner..'

After arriving at her apartment, Jane turned to me and said,' Boss, if you don't mind, I'm going to step into the bedroom for just a moment. I'll be right back.'

'Ok.' I nervously replied.

She went into the bedroom and, after a couple of minutes, she came out carrying a huge birthday cake ... followed by my wife, my kids, and dozens of my friends and co-workers, all singing 'Happy Birthday'.

And I just sat there....

On the couch.....

Naked.

And The October Wedding Season Continues..

2010-10-25T07:42:00.000-05:00

This weekend my best friend from work, Kellen, got married. It was a beautiful wedding and one that I had really looked forward to For the past few months, Kellen and I have talked over wedding details and she's told me about some of her different ideas so I was pretty sure that it was going to be a gorgeous wedding, but I was blown away by how nice it really was.

Kellen is from Southern Illinois and unbeknownst to me, there are many wineries and vineyards that are within an hour or so of her house. The one where she chose to get married was called the Von Jakob Winery and it bordered the Shawnee National Forest. It was truly a beautiful scene for a wedding.

Kellen has a great sense of style and I always wonder how she can be dressed so perfectly all the time. I have never seen her have a day where she looks "rough" (I have days like this pretty much every day). Her wedding dress and hair were gorgeous and all her attendants looked great too.

Needless to say, Drew and I had a great time at the wedding and we were so excited to be able to take a road trip through the country. Best wishes to the Laceys. They are on their honeymoon right now and I'm very jealous, they're in St Lucia! How awesome!

KB & Baby - Week 14

2010-10-21T08:50:00.000-05:00

Hey Guys,

Just a short post for now :) I have been sick this week and Drew and I were out of town last weekend so that's why I'm a little behind! Hopefully I'll catch up soon!

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 14 Weeks

Size of baby: Peanut is the size of a lemon

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 6 lbs (according to my Dr last Thursday)

Maternity Clothes: Not yet... My shirts are still fine but I'm wearing the maternity bands across the tops of my jeans! It is nice to be able to still wear them!

Gender: We have no clue! We'll be finding out the end of November and we're so excited to know!
Movement: none, yet...

Sleep: I finally feel like maybe I'm catching up on my sleep... Which is fabulous!
What I miss: oh gosh, this sounds bad... I'd love a glass of wine or a margarita...
Cravings: everything :)

Symptoms: Honestly, besides my cold, I have been feeling really good!
Best Moment this week: Hearing the baby's heartbeat at the Dr, it definitely made it feel more real

Anyway, sorry that this is so short! I'll try and get more put more together for you this evening or tomorrow. We had a great weekend and we're looking forward to some the next weeks being fun also! I can't wait to share everything we've been up to!

Show Us Your Life - Kitchens

2010-10-08T08:37:00.000-05:00

Good Morning! This week's Show Us Your Life topic at Kellys Korner is kitchens so I thought that I would participate!

I have also started with a picture of our dining room since I was not able to get them up for last week. We don't really ever use our dining room because our house has an eat in kitchen and we always eat there. It is nice though, to be able to have the China cabinet for space and the really big window for all the natural light. This room also has really tall ceilings (I tell everybody 15 feet, but that's just an estimate) that make it a neat edition to the house. The color is actually the same as it was because the paint looks really nice and we really like the color. Because of that, and the tall ceilings, I doubt we'll be painting it anytime soon!

Ok, on to the kitchen. Our kitchen is really open (which I love) and you can even see into the living room from the sink. We had friends over this week to watch baseball and it was so nice because I was able to be in the kitchen preparing food and still talk and socialize with the guests.

We had to replace all the appliances when we moved because the people that lived here previously took theirs. We replaced the fridge and stove with Samsung and the dishwasher is Whirlpool. We are really pleased with the appliances and love the way that they look in the kitchen.

This kitchen also has TONS of cabinets. My kitchen at my old house was not small, but every cabinet was full to the brim. There is also lots of counter space which is nice for canisters, appliances, and food prep.

As I mentioned earlier, the kitchen has an eat in area where we eat most of our meals. We bought this table and chairs when we moved and have really liked them. The set included a removable leaf and two extra chairs but we keep it down to four because that's what we would mostly use. There are also sliding doors out to the covered porch and back yard.

Haha! I'm not sure why I included this picture, but the pantry is probably one of my favorite parts of the house! We used to have to keep our food in our cabinets and it took up so much room! This pantry is great even though now I tend to buy lots more food (notice the three jars of spaghetti sauce, LOL)! Sorry that it is such a mess, its just nice to be able to shut the door and not have to worry about it!

Anyway, thank you guys for checking out our kitchen! We really love it and love our new house. I can't wait to see your houses also :)

Shootin Skeet!

2010-10-07T08:33:00.000-05:00

For his birthday this year, my dad wanted a Clay Pigeon Thrower (I'm sure there's a technical term for this thing, but I don't know what it is.) Since he never says anything he wants, Mom immediately made the purchase.

Sunday was the first day that it had been out of the box, even though Dad's birthday is New Years Eve. OOPS... Oh well, what better way to blow off some steam than shoot little orange disks.

Dad and Drew had two guns that they were shooting. A 12 gauge shotgun and a 20 gauge shotgun. Dad bought the 12 gauge this summer but he has owned the other since he was 12. My dad does not hunt or anything, so it was interesting that he was actually a really good shot! I was impressed. Drew loves to hunt (deer, doves, turkeys, etc) and was also a pretty good shot.

Me, I'm just good at loading the disks. No shooting guns for me... This time. Something tells me that they will have me shooting the next time they get out their toy.

One of the funniest parts of this activity was the horses. Mom and I were convinced that the horses would be really scared and that they'd probably run to the farthest corner of the pasture. NOT SO MUCH.. They started coming towards where Dad and Drew were shooting. I had to run and lock them back around the pond so that they would not come to close. What a bunch of idiots!

I definitely think that Dad's toy was a success. He and Drew went through two boxes of shotgun shells and he had the biggest grin on his face when they were finished. Something tells me that it won't be another nine months before they play with it again!

Wordless Wednesday... The Benefits of Country Living...

2010-10-06T08:00:00.002-05:00

Happy Hump-Day Friends!! We're on the downhill slide :)

ETA: Who knew that you could mis-spell something in a post that was supposed to be "wordless"??

Silly pictures from the wedding...

2010-10-05T09:02:00.000-05:00

I was lucky to be born into a big family. My dad has four brothers and sisters and from those children, there are 7 grandchildren. It has always made for lots of fun at Christmas, Thanksgiving, and other family functions. Weddings are no different.

Erin, Jennifer, and I decided during the reception that we wanted to have a photo shoot at the alter. We took flowers out of the decorations and used them as props. Please enjoy... and yes, we know... we are dorks :)

And finally, Angela's car. Keil's groomsmen definitely had a good time adding some very tasteful (ummm...) decorations.

My Brother's Wedding

2010-10-04T21:01:00.000-05:00

My brother and his fiance, Angela, got married on Saturday at Pennyrile State Park. The alter looked out over this lake and these woods. The leaves are just barely beginning to change colors and the scenery for the wedding was beautiful!

My mother. I think that she was glad to be the mother of the groom this time and not the mother of the bride! Apparently, its much easier.

The beautiful bride and her dad.

This was the point in the wedding where Keil told Angela that he had forgotten his tux at their house, which happened to be a 30 minute drive from the wedding location. After driving for an hour at 12:15, he was able to make it back in order to get in time for his 2:00 wedding. Nothng like a little drama!

Cutting the cake..

The first dance....

I am so excited that my brother has found somebody to make him so happy! Congrats Keil & Angela, I hope you have a great time in Hawaii! I am jealous!

Baby & Bridal Showers

2010-10-01T07:38:00.000-05:00

Weekend before last I had two showers to attend. Actually one to attend and one to host.

The one that I attended was a bridal shower for my brother and his fiance, Angela. They are getting married tomorrow, October 2. Our grandmother and aunts hosted the shower which was attended by lots of our extended family and members of the church where we grew up.

Jennifer was there and I was so excited to be able to actually see her two weekends in a row! This was also where I broke the news to my family that I was expecting... It was definitely a great surprise!

Angela and Keil, opening presents.

The shower that I hosted was a baby shower for my friend, Brittany, and her baby, Addison Clay. One of my responsibilities was to make a diaper cake. Mom and I were scared and definitely had no idea what we were getting in to. Luckily, there are great websites on the Internet that include awesome step by step directions that say just exactly what to do. Needless to say, we were very proud of our finished product!

This was the cake table. Do you see the pumpkin that is surrounded by cupcakes? It is actually a cake! Isn't that amazing? I didn't get a chance to eat cake but everybody that did said it was wonderful!

We were shocked when the RSVP's started coming in for the shower. There were 54 people who were invited and 45 RSVP'd that they would be there. There were approximately 50 people there. It was definitely a little stressful but luckily for Brittany, everybody brought amazing presents. She was able to almost complete her registry at one shower. I was so excited for her!

See the green bath tub on the top with the pink bow? That was my gift! It was filled with bath accessories and some onesies for Addison :) I hope that she gets lots of use out of them!

Riding Lessons

2010-09-30T09:22:00.000-05:00

So you guys remember how I started taking lessons back in June?? Well, I STILL LOVE THEM...

They are absolutely fantastic!

My mom was able to come and watch my lesson Friday night before we went to Lexington for the reining. I was glad that she was able to watch me ride because she is definitely the reason for my love of horses. She had a horse when I was born and has supported me 100% any and every time I have wanted to try something new. She also travelled many miles and paid tons of entry fees for me while I showed through high school and college. It definitely means a lot to be able to include her in the riding that I am doing now.

I am thinking that the jumping might have made her a little nervous though, especially because by the end of the lesson I was jumping two little cross rails like this one in a row. Its definitely fun :) It kind of feels like flying!

World Equestrian Games...

2010-09-29T21:22:00.000-05:00

The World Equestrian Games are currently taking place in Lexington KY. They have never been held outside of Europe and can basically be described as Horsey Olympics. When I found out about them and learned that they were only 2 1/2 hours from BG, I knew that I had to go and watch at least one event. While searching through the events, I decided that it would be best for me to go and watch something that I actually understood and had participated in, so I chose reining.

Reining is a class that is designed to show the skills that a horse would need while working cattle on the range. They would need to be able to show dramatic variations in speed (fast and slow while at the canter), agility (sliding stops and spins), and an ease in handling that would make them a pleasure to ride for long days while performing ranch duties. The horses used are primarily American Quarter Horses and this is an event that is the most popular in the US.

A typical reining pattern looks a little like this:

Walk to center ring and perform 3 pivot spins to the left and then 3 to the right.

Perform a large fast (hand gallop) circle to the left.

Perform a small slow circle to the left.

Change leads in the center and perform a large fast (hand gallop) circle to the right.

Perform a small slow circle to the right.

Change leads in the center and canter around the end of the pen.

Increase speed at center ring and ask for a sliding stop.

Roll back (a turn on the horses hocks) and lope around the end of the pen.

Increase speed at center ring and ask for a sliding stop.

Back 3 horse lengths.

This pattern (with the exception that it has two large fast circles each way) can be seen here...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nt5WOCMAFhY
That is Shawn Flarida from the gold medal winning Team USA... He had the highest score of the whole competition! I didn't get to see him ride but the video is awesome!

Show Us Your Life - Master Bedroom

2010-09-24T07:27:00.001-05:00

Well, friends, it's time for another Show Us Your Life with Kelly's Korner and today we are showing Master Bedrooms.

Like the rest of our house, our master bedroom is kind of a work in progress. At this point it is probably our favorite spot in the house. In our old house, our furniture was so big that it took up almost the whole room but in this house I think that it fits really well!

I love our furniture. When I walked into the furniture store and saw it, I almost died. It was exactly what I had been looking for. Drew wasn't with me, but I called him and had him google the collection. It is Broyhill Attic Heirlooms and the style is Fireside Cherry. I don't think they make it any more so I am glad that we went ahead and bought all of these pieces.

I bought this rocking chair when we were in our old house and had absolutely no where to put it. I think that right now it works in our bedroom and provides a little extra seating. The little blanket hanging across the back of it was made by my grandmother and I think that it looks great on the chair!

Our bedroom has a door to the covered patio. At some point, we'd like to screen the patio and then when the weather is nice we would be able to leave this door open and enjoy the sounds of the outdoors!

Scooter is a regular addition to our bed! I'm pretty sure that she sleeps curled up against Drew's pillow everyday, all day while we are at work. She has a rough life :)

What I have Learned About Pregnancy (At Week 10)

2010-09-22T08:23:00.000-05:00

It is never possible to get enough sleep...
Just because you used to be able to go 8 hours between lunch and dinner, does not mean that you will still be able to.
Some days you will feel really amazing and not feel pregnant but others you will just really want to go back home and go to sleep
Dr's appointments are odd and may seem like a waste of time sometimes (I have been twice and the second time all they did was weigh me and take my blood pressure?)
Working out while pregnant is really hard but will hopefully be really worth it.
Dry heaving is not fun.

Ok, so that is a short list but its interesting. I have actually felt really good so far. I have been able to maintain my weight even though I feel like somedays I eat like a horse. I'm pleased with that so far, but know that it will be a continuous struggle. I have also continued my riding lessons with the warning that if I fall off I can not be x-rayed and can not take pain medication any stronger than Tylenol. I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to do this, based on the time change and the fact that it is already dark much earlier in the day.

I have had very little nausea and I'm pretty sure that about half of what I have had is related to a cold that I had week before last. The cold came with lots of head congestion and drainage, which pretty much sent me over the edge. I've had that happen before so I'm thinking that it wasn't morning sickness so much as it was just nasty head stuff!

The other nausea has come from me attempting to learn that it really is ok to eat more than three times a day. I had a riding lesson a few weeks ago at 5:30 after work and it ended up being 8 before I was able to get home and eat. My lunch at noon was very gone and by the end of the night I was not doing so well. Like I said, lessons learned :)

Anyway, thank you all again for your sweet comments. We are doing well and can't wait to see how this adventure goes. We are also so excited about adding this new addition to our family!

I've been keeping a secret

2010-09-20T08:26:00.000-05:00

Paige, at Mommy to Charli, posted this poem today and I hope that she doesn't mind that I'm going to borrow it to make a little announcement...

You are my I love you
Author: Maryann K Cusimano

I am your parent, you are my child
I am your quiet place, you are my wild

I am your calm face, you are my giggle
I am your wait, you are my wiggle
I am your audience, you are my clown
I am your London Bridge, you are my falling down
I am your Carrot Sticks, you are my licorice
I am your dandelion, you are my first wish
I am your water wings, you are my deep
I am your open arms, you are my running leap
I am your way home, you are my new path
I am your dry towel, you are my wet bath

I am your dinner, you are my chocolate cake
I am your bedtime, you are my wide awake
I am your finish line, you are my race
I am your praying hands, you are my saving grace
I am your favorite book, you are my new lines
I am your nightlight, you are my sunshine
I am your lullaby, you are my peek-a-boo
I am your kiss goodnight, you are my I love you

The Richeys from BG will be going from a family of three (Drewby, KB, & Scoot) to a family of four in April.

We are very excited and can't wait to welcome "Peanut" into our family!

Show Us Your Life - Living Room

2010-09-17T08:59:00.001-05:00

Kelly has started another session of "Show Us Your Life" and this week she is focusing on living rooms.

My living room is still in a semi state of disarray, but it is getting much better. I guess that is good seeing as we have been in the house for a little over one month now.

Here is a picture of the living room that we were sent along with the MLS listing. It is a big open room with tall ceilings that leads directly into the kitchen. I love that because when (or if, at this point) we have company I will be able to be part of the action, even if I'm in the kitchen.

Here is the living room from the front door with our furniture. As you can see, there are no window treatments. These windows are floor to ceiling (almost 9 feet tall) and I think that the transoms add so much. I haven't figured out a way to add window treatments to them without covering them up. Please let me know if you have any suggestions :)

We are also having problems deciding what to do about lamps. We have floated the furniture to the middle of the room but there are not any outlets on the floor. We have talked about hiring an electrician to come in and install lamps, but that hasn't been a priority just yet. I would say that at some point we will do that. Drew also thinks we need a new (bigger) tv but I think he's crazy! HAHA!

And lastly, here's the living room from the side. Sorry about the laundry basket in the floor but that is definitely real life for us :) Anyway, we bought a new rug to go along with the new couches and tables that we bought. I am please with it! You can also see that the computer desk is in the corner. The living room is huge and the desk is pretty small so I think that it looks ok in that corner.

Well, thanks for visiting. Our house is a work in progress and I would love suggestions!

Wordless Wednesday... Cuddling with my sweet girl...

2010-09-15T09:39:00.001-05:00

Balloons, Tunes, & BBQ

2010-09-13T21:03:00.001-05:00

Every year in BG there is a hot air balloon race. Included in the weekend are a bar b que festival and on Saturday night there is a concert.

This year's concert included country singers Rhett Aikens & Nick Hoffman. I was amazed at all the songs that Rhett Aikens has written because they are some of the best songs on the radio right now. Nick Hoffman was also great. I really think that this was one of the best BTB Concerts that I have been too since they started.

I was so glad that my cousin, Jennifer, was able to come down from Louisville and join us for the concert. She is so fun. We decided it was definitely a shame that Nick Hoffman mentioned his wife on stage, because he and Jennifer would've been too cute together!

Before the concert, we went and had dinner at Samurai which is a Japanese steakhouse here in town. I had food off the Hibachi grill and Drew and Jennifer had sushi. It was a great dinner!

This is Ellie, she is Jennifer's little girl. Scoot was glad to have her to play with this weekend!

Wordless Wednesday... House Pictures...

2010-09-08T20:36:00.001-05:00

I promised you guys that we were making progress. These pictures are from the living room and the kitchen. I chose to not take pictures of the boxes that are still stashed in just about every room... Please don't judge. Oh, and don't judge the laundry basket either... haha!

Sorry guys...

2010-09-06T22:00:00.000-05:00

I'm sorry for having been such a crappy blogger for the past month. I had planned on getting caught up this past weekend but Drew's grandmother passed away on Thursday and we spent the weekend at the funeral and visitation. So I will work on getting caught up this week...

I hope you all had a great Labor Day weekend... Look forward to house pictures soon!

I am not dead...

2010-08-26T13:12:00.000-05:00

I promise. I've just entered the world of "hey... you now have all these boxes and need to find places to put stuff". We've also taken field trips to the world of "hey, you're getting new carpet on Wednesday so if you don't hurry the crap up and paint that master suite, you're risking painting your new cream carpet..."

I promise, I will live to blog again...

In the mean time, please tell me that I'm not lazy for wanting a house cleaner... I'm pretty sure that this house will never stay clean without one!

Moving along...

2010-08-15T21:25:00.000-05:00

We have been working on moving all this weekend and have actually been able to get almost all of our stuff over to the house. We have completely emptied both of our storage units and the apartment is also close to empty (Drew and I are sitting on our couch, which is the only piece of furniture left in the living room).

We are closing tomorrow and can't wait to get in and get busy unpacking all these boxes. As you can see, there are pretty much a million of them.

This is some the new furniture that I was telling you guys about. We fell in love with these leather couches and ended up purchasing them as opposed to the other set that we had originally gone to buy. We also bought the set of tables that you can see in these pictures. There is a sofa table, this coffee table, and two end tables. This afternoon we bought a new rug that I can't wait to put down and see how it looks!

This window is one of my favorite features of the house. There are two of them and this one is in the dining room. It is beautiful. The ceilings in this room and one of the two smaller bedrooms are vaulted and have these huge windows. I love natural light, so of course they were a major selling point for me!

I hope that y'all have a great week! I have been exhausted this past week with all the heat and am just hoping to make it through this whole unpacking process. I won't complain though, because it is definitely long over due!

Five Question Friday

2010-08-13T07:47:00.000-05:00

Thank goodness its Friday! I've been so ready for it. In honor of that, here are today's questions for Five Question Friday from Mama M's blog.

You should definitely link up and answer them, too!

1: Have you ever visited another country?
Yes. Actually, I have been to several. Most recently we went to Jamaica, but I've also been to Mexico and Costa Rica. I studied abroad my next to last semester as college. We spent two weeks going to Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Costa Rica. It was amazing. I'd love to have the opportunity to do it again!

This is the Arenal volcano. It is not erupting, they call this a "Cloud Forest"

We zip-lined through the rain forest. It was awesome :)

2: Where is the strangest place you have ever been?

The strangest place? Ugh... I'm trying to think... I'll get back to y'all on that one later!

3: What is your favorite season?
I think I like all the seasons, but sometimes I'm just ready for them to be over. For example, I'm really tired of it being 100 degrees everyday. Its absolutely wearing me out. HOWEVER, when its 35 degrees outside, I'll be tired of winter too!

4: What one song will always cheer you up?
How Bout Them Cowgirls by George Strait. First off, George is pretty much my boyfriend. Secondly, I'm a cowgirl. I'm not going to lie!

5: What Disney character do you resemble most?
I think Belle, from Beauty & The Beast. Of course, I'm not sure that I'm beautiful like she is, but you know, we have the same hair and eyes!

Citizen's Police Academy

2010-08-12T17:39:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I'm really excited. Remember how I mentioned in this post that I have a weird obsession with the tv show The First 48? Well, it might actually pay off!

I am participating in the BGPD Citizen's Police Academy. It sounds so awesome... I will spend 10 weeks learning about traffic stops, fire arms, and even real forensics. I just am so excited!

Also, probably the coolest thing is that I will get to do a Police Ride Along. I'll be paired with a police officer and will ride along with him one night on all his calls. Does that not sound AMAZING?

Needless to say... I'm pumped. I can't wait to share it with you guys :)

Most random post ever...

2010-08-06T10:23:00.000-05:00

Ok... Here goes. I hope that you can follow this post because truthfully, it will not have any type of order.

1: Drew's grandmother had a stroke this week. That's part of the reason for my absenteeism (is this a word?). She seems to be better and last night they were even talking about taking her out of ICU. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers if you get a chance.

2: The other part of my absenteeism (again, I'm not sure...) is that I have actually been motivated and gone to the gym this week. BE IMPRESSED. I did not, however, have my scheduled riding lesson on Wednesday due to the 100+ degree heat and the fact that we were afraid that at any moment we would have to head to WKY to the hospital.

3: This weekend is the first shower for my future sister-in-law, Angela. I do not, however, have her gift yet. Clearly, that is on my list of to-do's tonight.

4: We bought a bunch of furniture a few weeks ago (have I told y'all this yet?) and my parents are bringing it to BG on Saturday and we're sneaking it into the house. This should be fun. I'm only partially terrified that somebody is going to find out and then they'll jack my beautiful new leather couch and loveseat. That would be tragic. I'd also be sad if they made out with my sofa table, coffee table, and two end tables. Also, the new kitchen table and chairs. That would mean devastation. They're awesome though and I pretty much can't wait to show y'all pictures!

5: I'm ready for today to be over. GOOD GRIEF THIS HAS BEEN A LONG WEEK.

6: Hubby and I are going to have a nice dinner together tonight. I'm excited. These days it doesn't seem like we are doing that much. Frankly, I'm really not sure the last time that I even cooked. We have been mealing on sandwiches and tuna stuffed tomatoes (not that this is a bad thing, especially considering the tomatoes that my Mamaw gave me... BTW: I should definitely get more of them this weekend...)

Oh well, I guess that's enough for now. Oh except this... Do you guys remember me saying that I was reading Water for Elephants? Well, I finished it in like four days. Its absolutely fabulous and I 100% recommend it to anybody.

ok. DONE. officially.

Maybe soon?

2010-07-29T13:37:00.000-05:00

Well, hubby gave me some good news today about the house we're trying to buy (BofA has completely ruined me, we're buying it! I just have no confidence)... Hopefully we'll be closing soon. So in the spirit of that, here's a sneak peak to the inside...

The kitchen. There are not any appliances, but if you'll remember from this post , we bought appliances for the other house months ago. We'll have to buy a dishwasher and microwave, but that's really not a big deal. The room with the giant window in the back is the formal dining room but it also has an eat-in place in the kitchen.

The living room. It is very open to the kitchen. Also, there is an outdoor covered patio off the kitchen that you can see in the background.

Master bedroom. I actually like this color but think it will look like crap with my dark cherry furniture. However, like the appliances, we already have some paint. You can see the colors here. The bad thing is, we're thinking that this will only be about half as much as we need. This house has about 700 to 800 square feet than the other one.

Master bathroom. Something tells me that I'll enjoy soaking in that tub when (or if) we ever get this painting done!

Anyway, I'm excited... I hope it all plays out!

Oh, and Erin... This house is in your neck of the woods... We should figure out if we're neighbors.

Boys of Summer!

2010-07-29T10:01:00.000-05:00

So Kenny Chesney might have a great new song out titled "Boys of Fall" but frankly, I'm more into the Boys of Summer... Especially the boys that play for this particular team...

My husband, however, is not a fan. He hearts a particular team that calls Cincinnati their home. Luckily, these two teams play each other at least twice a year and Cincinnati is actually not that far from home. In the spirit of things, we will be travelling there this weekend so that my hubby can cheer for his team and I can cheer quite enthusiastically for these guys!

Chipper... You've always been my favorite. I definitely had a poster of you when I was about 12 hanging on my wall. You're the man. I hope this isn't your last season.

Jason Heyward... Holy crap dude, did you really steal home plate last night? That's amazing. I hope you smash one over the walls of Great American Ballpark!

My boys. Please, show those crazy Reds fans that I'll be with that you all are truly the superior team!

Books...

2010-07-27T10:44:00.000-05:00

I really like to read. I don't do it enough, but I really enjoy it.

So in an attempt to get into the groove a little more, I ordered some books...

Sara, from Southern Comfort, has blogged about Eat Pray Love and says that it is fantastic!

I promise that Robert Pattinson is not the only reason I ordered "Water for Elephants". Also, Mom told me that she has it on her Kindle and that its great!

My girl, Bananas, has blogged like crazy about "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" and when I told my mom I ordered it, she even got excited!

Have you guys read any of these books? What were your thoughts?

Edited to add (7/29/10):

My books ended up being delivered yesterday... I know, 24 hours from Amazon. That's crazy. My mom has Dragon Tattoo, Kellen is borrowing Eat Pray Love and I started Water for Elephants last night. It is fabulous. I read until 11:30 when I made myself put it down. Almost 100 pages in, I love it.

Jamie's Wedding...

2010-07-22T10:10:00.000-05:00

This past weekend, we made a flying trip to Newnan Georgia, which is about 45 minutes south of Atlanta. Mom and I left Friday afternoon when I got off work and we got to Newnan at about midnight. Saturday morning we got up and ran around with my Nanna before the wedding at 6:30.

We were very worried about the weather because they were calling for showers in the afternoon and the wedding was outside. There was a heavy downpour about an hour before the ceremony and then the sun came out and it cooled off. It ended up being a great evening!

I was so excited to see Jamie and her sister, Lisa. We were very close as children, but now we don't get to see each other much.

The wedding was in the garden of a beautiful Southern Antebellum home. It was a gorgeous place for a wedding!
Her cake! The groom's cake was UGA and they were both very tasty :)

My brother and his fiance, Angela.

Lisa!

The happy couple! You could tell that they were having so much fun! I'm very excited for them :)

Birthday Celebrations...

2010-07-20T21:25:00.000-05:00

Yes, yes, I'm behind. Imagine that! Anyway, the 12th was my birthday so we went camping with my mom and dad. I am wimpy, which means that I don't tent camp, so we stay in a motorhome. We played lots of cornhole and had my cousin Jennifer and my grandparents over for dinner. It was lots of fun!

Funny story, we woke up Sunday morning to this "whack, whack" sound. It was about 7:30 and my dad was not in the motorhome... he was outside playing cornhole, by himself... I'm pretty sure that he is now obsessed. I'm also pretty sure that he is getting his own set for Christmas! I'm planning ahead :)

All and all, it was a great birthday!

Mom, watching Dad and Drew kick out butts in cornhole...

Jennifer, one of my favorite people! I'm so glad she could make it in :)

Dad, the cornhole king. Who would've thought that???

All the comforts of home!

And as always, because she's cute :)

Moving on... but Moving In...

2010-07-16T09:59:00.000-05:00

So, I hope that you all don't think that I'm lying about us having bought a house. I promise we did, or at least we tried. But, we have given up and found another. We have it under contract with a close date of August 26. I can't wait.

Another PVA pic. This house has entirely too many trees (I wasn't really aware that was possible, I thought trees were great) so Drew and I will have our work cut out for us making it look a little bit less like the wilderness. All it needs on the inside is new carpet and paint. We're excited!

Happy Birthday To Me :)

2010-07-12T08:00:00.000-05:00

So today is my birthday... I'm 26 which means, officially closer to 30 than 20... Holy Crap, how'd that happen. In honor of this special day, I thought I'd post this list which is pretty stinking funny.

Enjoy!

25 Signs You’re Getting Older

1. Your potted plants stay alive.
2. Having sex in a twin-sized bed is absurd.
3. You keep more food than beer in the fridge.
4. 6:00 a.m. is when you get up, not when you go to sleep.
5. You hear your favorite song on an elevator.
6. You carry an umbrella. You watch the Weather Channel.
7.Your friends marry and divorce instead of hook up and break up.
8. You go from 130 days of vacation time to 7.
9. Jeans and a sweater no longer qualify as “dressed up.”
10, You’re the one calling the police because those damn kids next door don’t know how to turn down the stereo.
11. Older relatives feel comfortable telling sex jokes around you.
12. You don’t know what time Taco Bell closes anymore.
13. Your car insurance goes down and your car payments go up.
14. You feed your dog Science Diet instead of McDonald’s.
15. Sleeping on the couch makes your back hurt.
16. You no longer take naps from noon to 6:00 p.m.
17. Dinner and a movie — the whole date instead of the beginning of one.
18. MTV News is no longer your primary source for information.
19. You go to the drugstore for Ibuprofen and antacids — not condoms and pregnancy-test kits.
20. A $4 bottle of wine is no longer “pretty good stuff.”
21. You actually eat breakfast foods at breakfast time.
22. Grocery lists are longer than macaroni & cheese, diet Pepsi & Ho-Ho’s.
23. “I just can’t drink the way I used to” replaces “I’m never going to drink that much again.”
24. Over 90% of the time you spend in front of a computer is for real work.
25. You don’t drink at home to save money before going to a bar.

4th of July

2010-07-11T22:08:00.000-05:00

We spent the 4th of July weekend camping at Kentucky Lake with Drew's Mom & Dad. It was great to get away and we got to do lots of boating and ate lots of great food, including Patti's Pork Chops. YUM! We also watched some great fireworks at Kentucky Dam Marina.

This barge is travelling up Kentucky Lake by our camping spot. Kentucky & Barkley Lakes are man made lakes that provide transportation for barges as well as entertainment for people like me!

Kentucky Dam... The water level is at "Summer Pool" so they are not letting any out. If the water levels were high, they would open these gates to relase the water up river.

Boats in Kentucky Dam Marina waiting for the fireworks to start.

3's For Friday!

2010-07-09T12:18:00.000-05:00

Kara at The Pickerill Life tagged me to complete her list of 3's on Friday!

I hope that you guys enjoy and know that she would love for you to stop by her blog and say hello!

Also, I'd love to know if you put this list on your blog so please drop me a comment to let me know! I love learning all about my blog friends!

3 NAMES I GO BY:
1. Kelsey
2. KB (or Kelsey Beth)

3. Richey Rich - what they call me at work!

3 PLACES I HAVE BEEN:
1. Jamaica
2. Costa Rica
3. Puerto Rico

3 FAVORITE DRINKS:
1. Diet Coke (remember this post?)
2. Water - I drink lots of this at work.
3. Sweet Tea!

3 JOBS I HAVE HAD:
1. I worked at a horse barn all through high school and college.
2. I worked at a baby store.

3. Banker!

3 TV SHOWS I WATCH:
1. NCIS
2. CSI

3. Grey's Anatomy

3 PLACES I WOULD LIKE TO VISIT:
1. Italy
2. Fiji
3. Australia

(Kara's were so good that I left them!)

3 FAVE RETRO TV SHOWS:
1. Walker Texas Ranger (embarassing, I know)

2. Wheel of Fortune - and yes, I still watch it!

3. My parents say my favorite show used to be Dallas (when I was 5!)

3 FAVORITE DISHES:
1. Manicotti from The Brickyard Cafe
2. Bacon Lettuce & Tomato sandwiches, but only with garden fresh tomatoes!
3. Pretty much anything my mom makes

3 THINGS I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO:
1. Finally having a house again (hopefully sooner than later)

2. Having a baby! (also, hopefully sooner rather than later)

3. Celebrating my birthday (which is Monday) with my family this weekend!

3 PEOPLE I'M TAGGING
1.Paige at Mommy & Charli

2. Brittany at Treasuring the Little Things
3. Megan at Life of an Accidental Rhinestone Cowgirl

HAVE FUN!

Mom's new toy....

2010-07-05T22:02:00.000-05:00

So my parents are really silly... they like toys...

Motorcycle (check)

Motorhome (check)

and now...

Two seater sports car...

Honda S2000

They drove 8 hours one way to pick this baby up from Northern Illinois.

Oh well, they deserve it. Plus, I got to drive it today and it was awesome!

Eclipse...

2010-06-30T10:07:00.000-05:00

So, I'm going to see Eclipse tonight. Have any of you seen it? What were your thoughts?

www.people.com

I definitely can't wait to see this guy... He's just too cute :)

Busy, busy, busy.

2010-06-28T10:00:00.000-05:00

Busy, busy, busy... That's what we've been lately!

And it doesn't seem like its going to slow down any lately... Here's our next few weekends at a glance...

4th of July: Lake Barkley w/ Drew's mom & dad. We have reservations at Patti's and that is very exciting! We'll also get to see them shoot fireworks over the lake. Very fun!

July 9-11: Celebrating my birthday (July 12) with my mom and dad while camping at Pennyrile Resort Park. Also fun!

July 16-18: Going to Atlanta with my mom to watch my little cousin get married.

July 25: Drew is doing his first Olympic distance triathlon in Nashville.

July 30 - August 1: Spending the weekend in Cincinnati for a little baseball!! My Braves are in first place and Drew's Reds are in first place, so this could be a weekend full of great ball!!!

Oh, and hopefully we'll move some time during this stretch... I'm not feeling really optomistic, but you know, we can hope, right?

Lazy weekend...

2010-06-27T16:14:00.000-05:00

I like to think that we aren't usually lazy, but at 3:30 this afternoon, my husband looked like this...

So much for making the bed this morning, huh?

Oh well, everybody deserves a nap every once in a while...

Especially this little girl...

We hope y'all had a good weekend too!

Blue Angels...

2010-06-23T14:02:00.001-05:00

Five of these guys just flew over my office (which is by the BG airport, in case you were concerned) and it was the loudest thing ever. I was pretty sure they were going to land on my desk. It was awesome.

They are the US Navy Blue Angels and if you ever have a chance to watch them do an airshow I highly recommend it.

My brother was stationed in Pensacola when he was in the Navy and that is where the Blues are stationed. We went there one Spring Break and my mom and I were laying out on the beach watching them practice. It was too cool!

Riding Lesson!

2010-06-14T12:17:00.000-05:00

So, my riding lesson was this weekend and it was FANTASTIC... I think the only thing that could've made it any better would be if it hadn't been 95 degrees.

I worked at the walk, trot, and canter on a little horse named Dave. He was a sweetie and he and I got along pretty well! I also worked at the posting trot (where you rise and fall with the rhythm of the horse's trot) as well as in a "2 point" position (the up position of posting).

It was absolutely a great time and I have already scheduled another lesson for Thursday. Riding this weekend was definitely what the Dr ordered!

See the huge bend in my knee? That was a huge change for me! Holly started with my stirrups shorter than this but I think she realized I was a little uncomfortable and gave me one more hole's length!

Trotting over poles in the "2 Point" position. I think this was to test my rhythm with him.

PS: My new boots didn't come in last week so I ended up riding in my cowgirl jeans and boots. Hopefully, my new shorter boots will come in before my next lesson on Thursday. I think I would've been much more comfortable and flexible.

Lakewood Valley Triathlon

2010-06-13T20:52:00.000-05:00

This weekend Drew did the Lakewood Valley sprint triathlon. This race consisted of a 1/2 mile swim, 15 mile bike, and 3 mile run. His total time was 1 hour and 38 minutes which was about 18 minutes faster than he completed the same race last year.

He did the swim in 17 minutes and 40 seconds.

The bike took him 51 minutes.

And he finished the run in 26 minutes.

After finishing the race, he was able to cool off in the lake with a well deserved bottle of water and banana! I am so proud of his fantastic effort and the dedication and determination that he has put into these races. Great job, Drew!

Should I feel sorry for BP??? Because I don't!

2010-06-10T09:58:00.000-05:00

Photo from MSNBC

So, the headline on MSNBC right now is "As Spill Costs Mount, BP Faces Financial Squeeze"...

Oh crap, I guess that they won't be making the billions (or trillions, whatever it is) that they consistently have made, only millions. What a pity. These stupid oil companies have done nothing but "squeeze" Americans for as long as they could get away with it and now when they royally screw up, we should feel sorry for them??? ARE YOU KIDDING ME???

I don't feel sorry for BP... Their greed has created this mess. They couldn't get oil fast enough to sell (or by some accounts, hoard) by drilling in reasonable locations so they felt it necessary to drill in the middle of the Gulf? Wow. Good Move. Let's drill places where when we totally screw up we don't know how to fix it!

The really sad thing is that if they do by some chance go out of business, we Americans will again have to clean up their mess. Lucky us.

Sorry for the rant. Hope y'all are having a good day.

Almost to 100...

2010-06-07T10:24:00.000-05:00

Well, this is my 96th post... Do you guys have any suggestions for my 100th post??? For my 50th post I had you all give me questions and answered them but I think I want to do something different for Number 100 (but if you do have questions, you know I'll be glad to answer them!).

So what about it guys? What should I do... Please help, y'all should know by now that I'm not very creative!

Riding Lessons...

2010-06-06T12:48:00.000-05:00

I have mentioned before (here) how much I always thought of horse back riding as "therapy". It was the way that I released stress and also always seemed to be part of the way that I defined myself. Because of that, the past few years without consistent riding opportunities has been really hard for me.

Back at the beginning of the year, I went and watched my cousin Megan take a riding lesson. Megan is much younger and it was so exciting for me to be able to see how much she loved what she was doing! This past weekend, I was having a particularly grumpy day and decided that I needed to take charge of my life and do something for me. So, I decided to schedule a lesson with Megan's teacher! I called her instructor and told her about myself... I have ridden and shown stock seat (western) horses for my whole life but have only been in an English saddle a handful of times. I told her that I probably won't fall off but that I might not be the prettiest picture :)

The funny thing, is that English and Western riding attire is completely different so of course I had to buy some new stuff :) I had to buy pants, boots, and a pair of half chaps. Holly, the instructor, told me that I could just wear my cowboy boots and jeans for the first couple of lessons to make sure that I liked it... but I got a little over anxious and ordered the stuff anyway. The pants that I ordered look like these (don't they look flattering??) and my boots and chaps are black!

I don't think that I'll ever give up my love for stock horses. They are truthfully what I'd rather have, but I do think that it will be great for me in lots of different ways. Mostly because I will get to ride as often as time allows but it will also help me to keep my seat in decent shape.

Be on the look out for pictures :) I'll be sure to have my photographer (Drewby) taking lots for me!

Updates...

2010-06-02T21:38:00.000-05:00

Yeah, I know... Missing in Action... I am very sorry :(

So here's the latest in the life of the Richey's...

We spent Memorial Day weekend camping at Lake Barkley and it was amazing! We camped with my In-Laws in their camper and enjoyed a peaceful and quiet weekend :) We also got to eat at Patty's which was ridiculous! If you're ever in WKY, I recommend it.
No house yet. Obviously. We did sign the closing documents to sell the four-plex that we owned yesterday, so now its not ours anymore either. One of our four-plex partners needed out, so now the two remaining partners will start looking for something new!
Anyway, back to house stuff... Lowes had all their paint on sale over the weekend so we ended up buying 8 gallons of paint and a gallon of primer. Obviously we don't have anywhere to put it, so its just hanging out in the apartment. NICE. These are the colors that we picked out. The tan will be the neutral color for the whole house, the red is the kitchen and dining room, the light green is the master bedroom, and the dark green will be the master bath. I'm excited and think they'll look great! Hopefully I'm right :)
The most exciting thing for me is that I have signed up to take horse back riding lessons! I AM SO EXCITED... I have ridden all of my life but this is completely different and something I have never done before. There is a possibility that I could even end up jumping fences which would be so freaking cool... Like, out of this world cool. Y'all wish me luck :)

Anyway, have a good night :) Its bed time here in BG... I'll give more information on these lessons as they get closer to time... I seriously feel like I have a new outlook on life right now. Its amazing how much good a pony can do somebody!

Apartment Living!

2010-05-25T14:00:00.000-05:00

Well, since we are having all this drama revoling around closing dates, Drew and I have been making ourselves comfortable in this little one bedroom apartment. The 800 square feet of this apt have been quite the switch from our 16oo foot 3 bedroom 2 bath home, but we are making it even though most of our furniture is in storage.

Here is a brief tour of what we do have...

Our front door... with computer desk and part of the couch.... Oh, and I kept it real and left the laundry :) Don't y'all feel special!?!?!?!

The rest of the living room... incuding Scoot, her toys, and more laundry... Does it ever end?!

The kitchen. Its actually really big!

Yes, I know, there is a deep freeze in my kitchen! I'm so glad that we didn't get have to empty it and live without it. This thing is full! Plus Scoot's food and bowls...

Our bedroom... Our furniture seemed big in our old house but man its huge in this apartment... Also, let's not forget that there are two night-stands in storage!

More bedroom!

Well, I'm sure that y'all can definitely tell by these pictures that I definitely can't wait to be moving back into a house soon. I sure didn't expect to be almost 26 and living in an apartment. The only thing that is getting me through is knowing that this is temporary!

Anyway, hope y'all have a great day!

Weird TV Obsessions!

2010-05-24T14:00:00.000-05:00

I guess that everybody has them, but I definitely have some weird TV obsessions...

Drew is pretty convinced that I'm insane because these TV shows record every week. I love Deadliest Catch.

The Hillstrands are awesome. They crack me up every week. Also, Captain Andy has a Quarter Horse farm about an hour from where I grew up. That makes him (and the rest of the Time Bandit crew) awesome in my book!

I am also a big fan of the Hansen brothers and the Northwestern. Their youngest deck hand Jake, is pretty stinking cute! Also, the crew members of this ship made $50K in a 5 week King Crab season. Good grief.

I also like The First 48. I am a big crime TV person. Law & Order, CSI, and NCIS are also all on my DVR list but The First 48 is definitely my guilty pleasure. Drew says that this show is ridiculous because the story lines are always the same, but I really like it! Especially when the crimes are in Memphis and Louisville. Its crazy that stuff like that happens this close to my house!!!

What do you guys think?? Do you have guily TV pleasures likes this too???

Weekend Activities...

2010-05-23T19:15:00.000-05:00

Well, Hello All...

I hope that you all have had a great weekend. I know that Drew and I have.

Friday night, Drew and I went to Lowes and bought the appliances for our new house. Since it is a short sale, there are a few things that are needed for this house and a couple of them are a fridge and a new stove. We had been looking at the appliances for a while and finally had the measurements so we decided to go and check out the actual appliances that we might buy. We had decided on a Whirlpool range and fridge until the Lowes man told us that he would honor the 20% off price on the appliances that they would be offering during Memorial Day weekend. We actually ended up getting these appliances cheaper than the less expensive Whirlpools ones we had decided on! They are both Samsung and stainless steel. I think that they'll look great in our new house :)

I'm not sure if I have explained the situation with our new house to you all but if not... here goes. It is a short sale, which means that we are at the mercy of the bank as to when we close. The people who owned our house both had great job at BG's Corvette plant until the economy crashed. At that point, they each were laid off and became incapable of making their monthly payment. They were forced to uproot their family and move out of town. We have since found out that the house has moved from being a "Short Sale" to being a full blown "Foreclosure". Luckily, there has been some new legislation and our house purchase has actually moved faster than most of its kind.

The rest of our weekend has been fairly quiet, but we did go to Nashville last night and had dinner at a restaurant called the Bricktops. The food was EXCELLENT! We were a little discouraged with our overall experience with the restaurant but our dinner was truly great.

We also got to try out BG's new Olive Garden. We went to Sunday School this morning and then drove immediately to OG. At 10:45 there were people outside lined up almost to the end of the building. We were able to get in at about 11:15 and had unlimited soup, salad, and breadsticks for lunch. It was fantastic and I can't wait to go back again!

I hope y'all had a great weekend also and that you have a great week this week! See ya!

B of A - Quit Complicating My Life!

2010-05-18T13:43:00.000-05:00

Well, I was hoping to have this great news for you all today about how we were going to be closing on our lovely little house this coming Friday but thanks to Bank of America (or something) that is not the case. BOO!

I still have my hopes up that we have will have our house by Memorial Day weekend but really I'm not holding my breath. I do realize that we are very fortunate that this process has gone as smoothly as it has, but I'm not exactly the most patient person.

I have lots to do in that house and they are just being too slow!

(Yes, I know, y'all have already seen this picture... but I'm excited ok??? Maybe someday I'll get to put up pictures of the inside... but only after I paint it... k??)

Baby Shower...

2010-05-12T22:04:00.000-05:00

My cousin Erin is pregnant with her first baby, a little girl they will be naming Bella Joy. She is due on July 14. We threw her a family shower at my Mamaw & Papaw's house on Saturday evening. It was a great time and we were able to "shower"and spoil Baby Bella all evening long!

Erin received her crib mattress, bedding, and some adorable outfits for her shower gifts. I think that the shower was a success!

Us cousins were a little scared to touch the belly... You can tell that we've all been a little sheltered through our lives! We're also excited that in October, Angela, will officially be joining our family. She has been a nonofficial member for a while but it will be great to totally add her in!

Mamaw and her girls.

Angela, me, Mamaw, Jennifer, and Erin.
Me and my mommy. It was wonderful to spend Mother's Day with her. She is truly my Partner in Crime and best friend. I am so lucky to have such a wonderful mother who always is on my side.

Rain Rain Go Away...

2010-05-12T09:52:00.000-05:00

So apparently while we were out of town it rained. And rained. And rained. The county schools we out of session and their were roads closed because of standing water. Luckily, most of the water has gone but there are still many people who have had lots of water damage. Our little apartment stayed dry and we are checking out the new house this week to make sure that it held out the water as well.

We should all consider ourselves fortunate though our neighbors in Nashville didn't fair so well. As we flew over Nashville, it was very obvious that there was water where it wasn't supposed to be. The river looked swollen and the whole city looked wet. Hopefully they will be able to recover soon because Nashville is such a great city.

The crazy thing about these pictures is that they were all taken this past Saturday which is exactly one week after the rain storms occurred. It makes me wonder what these places looked like on Monday or Tuesday of last week. It also makes me pretty glad we were not in BG!

Jamaica... A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!

2010-05-11T21:26:00.001-05:00

While we were in Jamaica... we saw beautiful rainbows over the ocean while on a catamaran cruise...

We made great friends with these two SoCal residents!

We also made friends with these two, who got married on Tuesday. We were so excited to witness their wedding!

We watched the sun set from all hours of the afternoon. It was beautiful and something that I had never witnessed before.

We also went to Rick's Cafe and cliff dove. I have not been that scared too many times in my life but man, it was a rush!

I was in a fashion show wearing clothes that were entirely too small for me! We were also in a "Couples Game Show" that was hysterical.

The most important thing that we did in Jamaica was relax and enjoy each others company. It was amazing and I know that we will absolutely looking for any opportunity to go back. We have nothing but great things to say about the staff and facilities at Sandals Negril. I would recommend it to any of my friends and family!

We're home...

2010-05-08T11:30:00.000-05:00

We are home... Had a great time :)

I hope y'all had a great week too and I can't wait to tell about our amazing trip and the great friends we made!

Expect more later, but for now I have to go to WKY for Mother's Day!

Five Question Friday...

2010-04-30T10:25:00.000-05:00

Well, since I'm trying to avoid being productive at work (oops), I thought that I would be like my buddy Jenna at Jenna's Jargon and participate in Momma M's Five Question Friday...

1. If you could, would you go back to high school?NO. NO. NO. H-E-Double Hockey Sticks no. I passionately hated high school. Its cliquey and when you're in high school, you just don't realize how little all that crap matters. Now college, that is a completely different story. I would love to be a Career College Student.

2. If a genie appeared and granted you two wishes, what would they be? (And, no saying "more wishes".)
A: Well, the logical thing for me to say is a "pony" but if I wished for lots and lots of money, then I could just buy all the ponies that I wanted. As well as a Lexus SUV (*sigh*), lots of clothes, triathlon crap for my honey, and pretty much anything else we wanted. I could also donate money to different causes that are important.
B: I wish that my parents would move to BG. I miss them.

3. What kids show do you secretly like?Since there are no children at my house, we never watch kids shows. So unfortunately, I don't have an answer for this. I did used to be addicted to Nickelodeon though and I love Doug, Rocko's Modern Life, and all those silly shows!

4. What is your beverage of choice?Diet Coke. YUMMY! Check out this post if you have any questions!

5. What is something that you would change about yourself (or are working to change in yourself)?
I am trying to be healthier. Honestly, I am. I have been going to the gym a lot and have started doing a little weight training as well as my cardio. I do know however, that I need to change my eating habits. I like to eat, A LOT. On an another note, I should really work on not being judgemental. Because, I am.

What about you?? Link up if you want to play to Mama M's.

PS: Oh, and in case you forgot... I'm leaving for Jamaica tomorrow!

Coal Mines...

2010-04-29T16:33:00.001-05:00

Western Kentucky is very sad today. Last night, a ceiling collapsed in one of the local mines. There were two young men who were trapped and when we heard about it on the news this morning, I told Drew that there was a very good possibility that I would know one of them.

By lunch, it turned out that my prediction was true and that this young man had passed away. He was a senior at my high school when I was a freshman and we even had a class together. His last name was also the same as my maiden name even though we are not related.

Coal mining is a dangerous job. Its a scary, dirty, dark job and I can't imagine the men who go to work there everyday. A lot of times I probably don't say the nicest thing about the mines, but for the men who work in them it is a way for them to earn a very honest living for their families. These men are proud and their families are proud of them. If you don't believe me, listen to the song "Coal Miner's Daughter" or drive through my town and look at all the stickers that indicate a vehicle belongs to either a Coal Miner or a Coal Miners Wife.

We should all feel lucky that these men go to work for us everyday and make it possible for a light to come on everytime we flip a switch. I know that I take that for granted daily.

If you have a second, please say a prayer for the two families and all of the friends who were touched by this mornings accident.

Here is an article about the accident.

April showers bring April flowers???

2010-04-26T08:17:00.000-05:00

This is all that was on the TV Saturday... Pictures of the radar screen with lots of bright and vivid colors. We had a little wild weather come through.

It started with lots of rain for our drive back from Louisville and didn't end until almost bed time. At one point we were under a Tornado Watch and Severe Thunderstorm Warnings but all we ended up getting was a little wind and a little rain. All and all, no big deal.

The weather people had a great time though. I really think they enjoy talking about how bad the weather can be and how everybody needs to "prepare to take cover". Whatever. At one point, they even said that people didn't need to be sitting on their porches watching the storm roll in. So what do you think Drew and I did when it came towards BG?? Oh yeah, we were on the porch! HAHA!

The good thing about the rain is that these babies probably really needed a drink. I love Clematis Vines and think they are so pretty.

Please ignore the "whirly birds", they are definitely one thing that I will not miss about our old house.

The Derby Festival Mini Marathon

2010-04-25T08:00:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was a big day for us! We spent Friday night in Louisville and then got up bright and early (4:45 our time) for the Kentucky Derby Festival Half Marathon! It was a great time and I am so proud of Drew for running. He ran the race in 2 hours and almost 2 minutes. His goal was to do it under two hours but I told him that I thought this was surely close enough. I'm not sure he agrees, but I think he did great!

There were so many people that entered the race. I think Drew said that there were 15,000 and over 650 in his age group. He said that the start was a nightmare because of all the people! I can't even imagine.

Jennifer (my cousin mentioned here) let us spend the night at her house and then went with us yesterday morning. It was great to spend some time with her also!

He got this cute finishers medal that I was pretty sure he was going to wear all day yesterday!

Show Us Your Life: How We Met

2010-04-23T09:01:00.001-05:00

Well, I thought that I'd participate in Kelly's Korner's Show Us Your Life because I have never told you all how Drew and I met...

I should start with some background information:

My parents own a 4 Wheeler and Motorcycle Dealership in my hometown. Drew and his cousin, Ross, both raced motocross in high school and bought their dirt bikes from my dad. They also raced at the track my brother raced at and we sponsored. I was also a Regional FFA Officer with Ross. I was the VP and he was my secretary :)

Ok, now on to the story. It was the spring semester of my junior and Drew's sophomore (yes, I'm older) year in college and I was going into a Macro-Economics class. I sat at a table with a random person because I didn't know anybody else. The teacher (Mary Carey, her name was hysterical) called roll and she called Nathan Richey who then said that he went by Drew. I asked him "aren't you Ross's cousin?" and he said "yes." We sat by each other the next day and honestly we just clicked. We talked through the whole class. I'm sure that Mary Carey HATED us because we talked constantly and then aced her class. Drew was an Econ major so it was basic for him and I'm not gonna lie, if I didn't know an answer on the test he definitely let me copy... HAHA!

The thing is, and this is what makes me horrible, he asked me out so many times and I blew him off. The reason: He was younger than me. How horrible. Anyway, this lasted a couple months until I finally got over it (and got smart) and as they say THE REST IS HISTORY!

Thanks for stopping by!

The first step is admitting you have a problem...

2010-04-23T08:19:00.000-05:00

Ok, so I don't smoke and I don't do drugs but apparently I have a major addiction in my life. To this:
Diet Coke is a staple of my daily routine. I try not to drink more than one a day and I drink a lot (at least 64 ounces) of water everyday at work... We are currently out of DC's at my house and I'm trying to avoid buying them since we will be moving this weekend so yesterday I did not have a Diet Coke at all. By dinner time last night I had a raging head ache that just wouldn't quit and all I could think about was Diet Coke. Holy Crap, I guess that means I'm addicted.

So what did I do this morning on my way to work?? Well, I stopped at a gas station and got a Diet Coke fountain drink and a bag of Cheez It's. I already feel better.

At least I know I have a problem. I guess the bad thing is that I'm kind of ok with it :)

Oh! If you have a few seconds, check out this website as it is hysterical. Apparently, it is being shown all over the web and even on ESPN. Let's just say that the WKU baseball team and the FAU baseball team got a little bored during their 2 hour rain delay. Rock Band, roller coasters, and wrestling were all involved!

Its a little busy around here...

2010-04-19T09:14:00.001-05:00

Well, our house is officially sold. Everything has gone through and we have a closing date of April 28. The buyers will take possession that day so we have been very busy moving out.

We will temporarily be moving to an apartment until we are able to take possession of our new house. For Drew and I, that day can't come soon enough. We are encouraged with the progress that has been made and hope that it continues to move along at a quick pace.

Until then, I'm sorry in advance but I'll probably be a little absent from my blog.

We are just trying to make it to the light at the end of the tunnel... At this point, that light is the sun shining on the beach in Jamaica :) We're less than two weeks away!

Signs of Spring...

2010-04-12T18:14:00.001-05:00

It is starting to be awfully Springy here. I love it. The weather has been beautiful and now everything is starting to come alive. Like these irises... I planted them last year and this year they are blooming like crazy. The funny thing about these irises is that they came from my Mamaw's house. So they went from WKY to BG... haha... They're well travelled.

I guess that this fall, I will have to dig up some more and take them to the new house because I sure think that they are pretty... Not too mention, they require no work!

Oh, and this tree is what Scooter will miss the most about our house... She climbs it. Yes, on her own.

Oh, and if you say "Scooter, get in that tree!" she'll do it on command :)

TOOTLES!